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Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
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* 


J* 


THE 


PHILOSOPHY 


OF  A 


FUTURE  STATE 


BY  THOMAS  DICK, 

AUTHOR  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN  PHILOSOPHER,  THE  PHILOSOPHY 
OF  RELIGION,  &C.  &C. 


DfillalrdiJi&ta: 

KEY  &  BIDDLE,  23  MINOR  STREET. 

1835. 


TO 


THOMAS  CHALMERS,  D.  D. 

PROFESSOR  OF  MORAL  PHILOSOPHY  IN  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF 

ST.  ANDREWS. 


Sir, 

In  Dedicating  to  you  this  volume,  which  has  for  its  object 
to  exhibit  a  popular  view  of  the  Philosophy  of  a  Future 
State,  as  deduced  from  the  light  of  science  and  revelation, 
— a  consideration  of  a  far  higher  nature  than  the  formal  and 
customary  honour  of  addressing  a  man  of  literary  and  scien- 
tific  attainments,  induced  me  to  shelter  it  under  your 
patronage. 

In  the  several  vocations  in  which  Divine  Providence  has 
called  you  to  officiate,  you  have  proved  yourself  the  warm 
and  disinterested  patron  of  all  that  is  benevolent  and  good — 
of  every  thing  that  concerns  the  present  and  eternal  welfare 
of  mankind  :  and  your  praises  have  been  re-echoed  from 
one  corner  of  the  land  to  another,  as  the  champion  of  the 
Christian  religion, — the  doctrines  of  which,  your  voice  and 
your  pen  have  done  so  much  to  illustrate. 

Your  writings  furnish  ample  testimony  to  the  world  of 
■<"Our  earnest,  active,  and  unwearied  solicitude  for  the  moral 
and  religious  improvement  of  mankind — a  solicitude  which 
is  not  abated  by  any  minor  differences  of  opinion  in  those 
with  whom  you  co-operate,  where  the  great  object  is,  to 
diffuse  knowledge  and  happiness  over  the  face  of  the  earth. 

Your  kind  indulgence  to  me,  on  the  slight  acquaintance 
I  have  of  you  personally,  and  your  approbation  of  some  of 
my  labours,  in  endeavouring  to  connect  Science  and  Reli¬ 
gion,  induce  me  to  hope,  that,  if  the  views  taken  of  the 
present  subject,  in  any  measure  correspond  with  your  own, 
you  will  countenance  my  humble  attempts  to  dispel  the  pre- 

% 


4 


judices  which  many  well  meaning  Christians  may  entertain, 
as  to  the  beneficial  tendency  of  exhibiting  the  sciences  of  a 
present,  as  applicable  to  the  circumstances  and  relations  of  a 
future  world. 

That  you  may  long  be  spared  as  the  advocate  of  vital 
Christianity — as  a  blessing  and  ornament  to  your  country — 
and  as  a  zealous  instructor  of  those  who  are  destined  to 
promote  its  best  interests  ;  and  that  you  may  enjoy,  without 
interruption,  the  pleasures  arising  from  a  consciousness  of  the 
esteem  and  approbation  of  the  wise  and  the  pious,  is  the 
sincere  prayer  of 


Sir, 


lour  much  obliged, 

and  humble  Servant, 


Broughty  Ferry,  near  Dundee 
Dec .  28,  1827. 


THOMAS  DICK. 


PREFACE. 


The  reasonings  and  illustrations  contained  in  the  following 
pages  are  intended  to  direct  the  intelligent  Christian  in  some 
of  those  trains  of  thought  which  he  ought  to  prosecute,  when 
looking  forward  to  the  scene  of  his  future  destination.  The 
Author  was  induced  to  engage  in  the  discussion  of  this  sub- 
ject,  from  a  consideration,  that  many  vague  and  erroneous 
conceptions  are  still  entertained  among  Christians  in  regard 
to  the  nature  of  heavenly  felicity,  and  the  employments 
of  the  future  world.  In  elucidating  the  train  of  thought 
which  is  here  prosecuted,  he  has  brought  forward,  without 
hesitation,  the  discoveries  of  modern  science,  particularly 
those  which  relate  to  the  scenery  of  the  heavens  ;  convinced, 
that  all  the  manifestations  of  himself  which  the  Creator  has 
permitted  us  to  contemplate,  are  intended  to  throw  light  on 
the  plan  of  his  moral  government  in  relation  both  to  our  pre¬ 
sent  and  our  future  destiny.  He  has  carefully  avoided  every 
thing  that  might  appear  like  vague  or  extravagant  conjecture  ; 
and  he  trusts  that  the  opinions  he  has  broached,  and  the 
conclusions  he  has  deduced,  will  generally  be  found  accord¬ 
ant  with  the  analogies  of  Nature  and  the  dictates  of  Reve¬ 
lation.  He  is  aware,  that  he  has  many  prejudices  to  en¬ 
counter,  arising  from  the  vague  and  indefinite  manner  in 
which  such  subjects  have  been  hitherto  treated,  and  from  the 
wa,nt  of  those  expansive  views  of  the  Divine  operations  which 
the  professors  of  Christianity  should  endeavour  to  attain  ; 


VI 


but  he  feels  confident  that  those  who  are  best  qualified  to 
appreciate  his  sentiments,  will  treat  with  candour  an  attempt 
to  elucidate  a  subject  hitherto  overlooked,  and  in  which 
every  individual  in  the  human  race  is  deeply  interested. 

It  was  originally  intended  to  publish  what  is  contained  in 
Parts  II.  and  III.  without  any  dissertation  on  the  evidences 
of  a  future  state  as  deduced  from  the  light  of  nature — taking 
the  immortality  of  man  for  granted  on  the  authority  of  Reve¬ 
lation.  But,  on  second  thought,  it  was  judged  expedient,  for 
the  sake  of  general  readers,  to  exhibit  a  condensed  view  of 
those  arguments  which  even  the  light  of  reason,  can  produce 
in  favour  of  the  immortality  of  man.  In  this  department  of 
the  volume,  the  Author  has  brought  forward  several  argu¬ 
ments  which,  he  is  not  aware,  have  been  taken  notice  of  by 
ethical  writers,  when  treating  on  this  subject.  He  has  en¬ 
deavoured  to  illustrate  these  and  the  other  arguments  here 
adduced,  in  minute  detail,  and  in  a  popular  manner,  so  as  to 
be  level  to  the  comprehension  of  every  reader  ;  and  he 
trusts,  that  the'forceof  the  whole  combined,  will  be  found  to 
amount  to  as  high  a  degree  of  moral  demonstration  as  can 
be  expected  in  relation  to  objects  which  are  not  cognizable 
by  the  eye  of  sense. 

The  greater  portion  of  what  is  contained  in  Part  III.  having 
been  written  above  eight  years  ago,  several  apparent  repeti¬ 
tions  of  facts  alluded  to  in  the  preceding  Parts,  may  perhaps 
be  noticed  by  the  critical  reader;  but,  in  general,  it  will  be 
found,  that  where  the  same  facts  are  repeated,  they  are 
either  exhibited  in  a  new  aspect,  or  brought  forward  to  elu¬ 
cidate  another  subject. 

The  practical  reflections  and  remarks  embodied  in  the  last 
Part  of  this  work,  will  not,  the  Author  is  persuaded,  be  con¬ 
sidered  by  any  of  his  readers,  as  either  unnecessary,  or  un¬ 
appropriate  to  the  subjects  treated  of  in  the  preceding  parts 
of  this  volume.  It  is  of  the  utmost  importance  that  every 
individual  be  convinced,  that  he  cannot  be  supposed  a  candi¬ 
date  for  a  blessed  immortality,  unless  the  train  of  his  affec¬ 
tions,  and  the  general  tenor  of  his  conduct,  in  some  measure 
correspond  to  the  tempers  and  dispositions,  and  the  moral 
purity  which  prevail  in  the  heavenly  state. 

The  favourable  reception  which  the  public  have  given  to 


the  volumes  he  has  formerly  published,  induces  the  author 
to  indulge  the  hope,  that  the  present  volume  may  not  be 
altogether  unworthy  of  their  attention.  That  it  may  tend  to 
convince  the  sceptical  of  the  reality  of  an  immortal  existence 
— to  expand  the  believer’s  conceptions  of  the  attributes  of 
the  Divinity,  and  the  glory  of  “  that  inheritance  which  is 
reserved  in  heaven”  for  the  faithful — and  to  excite  in  the 
mind  of  every  reader,  an  ardent  desire  to  cultivate  those 
dispositions  and  virtues  which  will  prepare  him  for  the  enjoy¬ 
ment  of  celestial  bliss — is  the  Author’s  most  sincere  and 
ardent  wish,  as  it  was  the  great  object  he  had  in  view  when 
engaged  in  its  composition. 


4 


- 


'  • 


CONTENTS. 


Introduction. — Importance  of  the  question  which  relates 
to  the  reality  of  a  future  world — folly  of  the  indifference 
which  prevails  in  relation  to  this  point,  13. 


PART  I. 

CHAPTER  I. 

PROOFS  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


Section  I. 

On  the  universal  belief  which  the  doctrine  of  Immortality  has 
obtained  in  all  ages,  17. 

Section  II. 

On  the  desire  of  future  existence  implanted  in  the  human 
mind ,  26.  . 


X  CONTENTS. 

Section  III. 

On  the  intellectual  faculties  of  man ,  and  the  strong  desire  of 
knowledge  implanted  in  the  human  mind ,  33. 

Section  IV. 

On  the  perpetual  progress  of  the  mind  towards  perfection,  44. 

Section  V. 

On  the  unlimited  range  of  view  which  is  opened  to  the  human 
faculties  throughout  the  immensity  of  space  and  duration,  46. 

Section  VI. 

On  the  moral  powers  of  man,  55. 

Section  YII. 

On  the  apprehensions  and  forebodings  of  the  mind  when  under 
the  influence  of  remorse,  64. 

Section  VIII. 

On  the  disordered  state  of  the  moral  world,  when  conlraslea 
with  the  regular  and  systematic  order  of  the  material,  70. 

Section  IX. 

On  the  unequal  distribution  of  rewards  and  punishments  m 
the  present  state,  80. 

Section  X. 

On  the  absurdity  of  supposing  that  the  thinking  principle  in 
man  will  ever  be  annihilated,  88. 

Section  XI 

On  the  gloomy  considerations  and  absurd  consequences  involved 
in  the  denial  of  a  f  uture  state,  92. 


CONTENTS. 


XI 


CHAPTER  II. 

PROOFS  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE  FROM  DIVINE  REVELATION,  108. 

Practical  influence  which  the  doctrine  of  a  future  state  ought 
to  have  upon  our  affections  and  conduct,  116. 


PART  II. 

ON  THE  CONNEXION  OF  SCIENCE  WITH  A  FUTURE  STATE,  124. 

Object  of  scientific,  investigation,  127. 

Objects  on  which  the  faculties  of  celestial  intelligences  will  be 
employed,  129. 

Extent  of  the  general  conflagration,  131. 

Sciences  which  will  be  prosecuted,  in  a  future  state,  143. 

Arithmetic,  its  objects — utility  of  numbers  and  their  combina¬ 
tions — illustrations  from  Scripture,  143. 

Mathematical  sciences,  their  utility — angels  recognise  the  prin¬ 
ciples  of  these  sciences — the  Creator  has  laid  the  foundation 
of  these  sciences  in  his  works,  147. 

Astronomy,  its  objects — presents  an  immense  field  of  contem¬ 
plation,  150. 

Natural  Philosophy, — its  objects  and  discoveries,  156 

Anatomy  and  Physiology ,  their  objects — wonders  of  the  human 
frame — resurrection-body,  flc.  161. 

History — contains  a  record  of  the  ways  of  Providence — our 
ignorance  of  many  important  facts  in  history — history  of 
angels  and  other  intelligences,  163. 


All 


CONTENTS. 


PART  III. 

ON  THE  AIDS  WHICH  THE  DISCOVERIES  OF  SCIENCE  AFFORD 
FOR  ENABLING  US  TO  FORM  A  CONCEPTION  OF  THE  PER¬ 
PETUAL  IMPROVEMENT  OF  THE  CELESTIAL  INHABITANTS  IN 
KNOWLEDGE  AND  FELICITY,  181. 

Vague  and  distorted  conceptions  in  regard  to  the  employments 
of  heaven,  181. 


PART  IV. 

ON  THE  MORAL  QUALIFICATIONS  REQUISITE  TO  THE  ENJOY. 
MENT  OF  THE  FELICITY  OF  THE  FUTURE  WORLD,  239. 

Examples  of  depravity — Buonaparte ,  265. 

Lord  Byron,  267- 

Example  from  Cochrane’s  Travels,  268. 

Misery  resulting  from  the  association  of  malignant  characters > 
269. 

General  conclusion,  272. 


APPENDIX. 

Mr.  Shepherd’s  Letter  to  Lord  Byron,  273. 

His  Lordship’s  reply — his  last  sentiments  in  reference  to  reli¬ 
gion  and  eternity,  274. 

Buonaparte’s  opinion  of  the  morality  of  the  New  Testament, 
<$fC.  276. 


THE 


PHILOSOPHY 

or  a 

FUTURE  STATE. 


PART  I. 

PROOFS  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE, 
INTRODUCTION. 

The  sketches  contained  in  Parts  II.  and  III.  o  this  work, 
being  chiefly  intended  to  illustrate  the  connexion  of  science 
with  the  scenes  of  a  future  world,  and  the  aids  which  its 
discoveries  afford,  for  enabling  us  to  form  some  conception 
of  the  perpetual  improvement  of  its  inhabitants  in  know¬ 
ledge  and  felicity — I  shall  endeavour,  in  this  First  Part,  to 
exhibit  a  condensed  view  of  some  of  those  evidences  which 
prove  the  immortality  of  the  soul,  and  the  eternal  destina¬ 
tion  of  man. 

This  is  an  inquiry  far  more  interesting  and  important,  to 
every  individual  of  mankind,  than  any  other  which  comes 
within  the  range  of  the  human  mind.  Next  to  the  being  of 
a  God,  the  doctrine  of  the  immortality  of  man  lies  at  the 
foundation  of  all  religion,  and  of  all  the  animating  prospects 
which  can  cheer  us  in  this  land  of  our  pilgrimage.  Remove 
from  the  mind  the  belief  of  a  future  existence,  and  the  hope 
of  immortality,  and  religion  becomes  a  shadow,  life  a  dream, 
and  the  approach  of  death  a  scene  of  darkness  and  despair. 
Upon  this  short  question,  “Zs  man  immortal ,  or  is  he  not 
depends  all  that  is  valuable  in  science,  in  morals,  and  in 
theology, — and  all  that  is  most  interesting  to  man  as  a  so¬ 
cial  being,  and  as  a  rational  and  accountable  intelligence. 
If  he  is  destined  to  an  eternal  existence,  an  immense  impor¬ 
tance  must  attach  to  all  his  present  affections,  actions,  and 
pursuits ;  and  it  must  be  a  matter  of  infinite  moment,  that 
they  be  directed  in  such  a  channel,  as  will  tend  to  carry  him 

2 


14  THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 

forward,  in  safety,  to  the  felicities  of  a  future  world.  But 
if  his  whole  existence  be  circumscribed  within  the  circle  of 
a  few  fleeting  years,  man  appears  an  enigma,  an  inexplica 
ble  phenomenon  in  the  universe,  human  life  a  mystery,  the 
world  a  scene  of  confusion,  virtue  a  mere  phantom,  the 
Creator  a  capricious  being,  and  his  plans  and  arrangements 
an  inextricable  maze. 

There  is  too  much  reason  to  believe,  that  the  indifference 
to  religion,  which  so  generally  prevails,  especially  among 
those  who  are  raised  a  little  above  the  vulgar  throng,  am! 
the  unhallowed  propensities  and  vicious  practices  to  which 
it  gives  rise — are  owing,  in  a  considerable  degree,  to  the 
want  of  a  full  conviction  of  the  reality  of  a  future  existence, 
or  to  some  doubts  which  hover  about  the  mind,  in  relation 
to  this  important  point.  There  is  no  man,  however  insen¬ 
sible  to  the  obligations  of  religion,  that  can  fully  satisfy  his 
own  mind,  or  the  minds  of  others,  that  the  idea  of  a  future 
world  is  a  mere  chimera.  On  the  contrary,  the  possibility, 
and  even  the  probability,  of  the  truth  of  man’s  eternal  des¬ 
tiny,  will,  at  certain  seasons,  force  themselves  upon  the 
minds  even  of  the  mo3t  careless  and  profane.  Yet,  it  is 
amazing  to  consider,  with  what  ease  and  indifference  multi¬ 
tudes  of  this  description  can  glide  down  the  stream  of  time, 
under  the  awful  uncertainty  whether  it  will  land  them  in  the 
shades  of  annihilation,  the  realms  of  bliss,  or  the  regions  of 
endless  woe. — “Between  us  and  these  three  periods  or 
states,”  says  a  celebrated  French  writer,  “no  barrier  is  in¬ 
terposed  but  life,  the  most  brittle  thing  in  all  nature  ;  and 
the  happiness  of  heaven  being  certainly  not  designed  for 
those  who  doubt  whether  they  have  an  immortal  part  to  en¬ 
joy  it,  such  persons  have  nothing  left,  but  the  miserable 
chance  of  annihilation,  or  of  hell.  There  is  not  any  reflec¬ 
tion  which  can  have  more  reality  than  this,  as  there  is  none 
which  has  greater  terror.  Let  us  set  the  bravest  face  on  our 
condition,  and  play  the  heroes  as  artfully  as  we  can,  yet  see 
here  the  issue  which  attends  the  goodliest  life  upon  earth  ! 
It  is  in  vain  for  men  to  turn  aside  their  thoughts  from  this 
eternity  which  awaits  them,  as  if  they  were  able  to  destroy 
it,  by  denying  it  a  place  in  their  imagination.  It  subsists 
in  spite  of  them  ;  it  advances  unobserved  ;  and  death,  which 
is  to  draw  the  curtain  from  it,  will,  in  a  short  time,  infallibly 
reduce  them  to  the  dreadful  necessity  of  being  for  ever  noth¬ 
ing,  or  for  ever  miserable.” 

To  treat  a  subject,  so  interesting  and  momentous,  with 


INTRODUCTION. 


15 


levity  or  indifference — to  exert  all  the  energies  of  the  soul 
in  the  pursuit  of  objects,  which  a  few  years  at  most  will  snatch 
for  ever  from  their  embrace, — and  never  to  spend  one  serious 
hour  in  reflecting  on  what  may  possibly  succeed  the  present 
scene  of  existence,  or  in  endeavouring  to  find  some  light,  to 
clear  up  the  doubts  that  may  hang  over  this  important  in¬ 
quiry,  and  to  treat  with  derision  and  scorn  those  who  would 
direct  them  in  this  serious  investigation — is  not  only  foolish 
and  preposterous,  but  the  height  of  infatuation  and  ol  madness. 
It  is  contrary  to  every  principle  on  which  reasonable  men 
act,  in  relation  to  the  affairs  of  the  present  world.  To  re¬ 
tain  the  profits  of  a  lucrative  business,  or  to  prevent  the  loss 
of  fortune,  or  of  honour,  a  man  will  sometimes  strain  every 
nerve,  stretch  every  faculty,  deprive  himself  of  sleep,  sub¬ 
mit  to  numerous  privations,  encounter  the  raging  elements, 
and  brave  the  dangers  of  the  ocean.  IN' ay,  he  will  often  be 
overwhelmed  with  despondency  at  the  slightest  inconven- 
iencies,  and  will  pass  whole  weeks  and  months  in  sullenness 
and  chagrin,  for  an  imaginary  affront,  or  for  the  loss  of  a  few 
pounds,  while,  at  the  same  time,  he  remains  perfectly  indif¬ 
ferent,  and  without  the  least  emotion,  in  regard  to  the  un¬ 
known  scenes  of  the  eternal  world,  and  the  danger  of  end¬ 
less  misery  to  which  he  is  exposed.  Such  a  conduct,  and 
such  dispositions,  which  are  too  frequently  realized  in  the 
case  of  thousands  who  occasionally  mingle  in  our  religious 
assemblies,  are  obviously  inconsistent  with  the  dictates  of 
prudence  and  of  common  sense,  and  with  every  thing  that 
ought  to  characterize  a  rational  and  an  accountable  creature. 

When  we  look  back  into  the  inexplorable  abyss  of  that 
eternity  which  is  already  past,  when  we  look  forward  to  the 
immeasurable  extent,  and  the  unfathomable  depths  of  eter¬ 
nity  to  come, — when  we  behold  Time ,  and  all  its  circling 
years,  appearing  only  like  a  point  on  the  surface  of  that 
vast  and  boundless  ocean;  when  we  consider  the  immense 
spaces  of  the  universe  with  which  we  are  surrounded,  and 
the  innumerable  worlds  which  lie  dispersed  in  every  direc¬ 
tion  throughout  the  immeasurable  tracts  of  creation;  when 
we  consider,  that  our  existence,  as  thinking  beings,  may  run 
parallel  with  interminable  ages  ;  and  that,  in  the  revolutions 
of  eternity,  we  may  exist  in  regions  of  space  immeasurably 
distant  from  our  present  habitation,  associate  with  other 
orders  of  intelligent  beings,  and  pass  through  new  scene? 
and  changes  in  distant  worlds, — and,  when  we  consider  that 
our  relation  to  time  may  be  dissolved,  and  our  connexion 


16 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


with  eternity  commence,  within  the  space  of  a  few  months 
or  years,  or  even  before  the  sun  shall  have  described  ano¬ 
ther  circuit  around  the  earth — no  inquiry  can  appear  so  mo¬ 
mentous  and  interesting,  as  that  which  leads  to  the  determi¬ 
nation  of  our  future  and  eternal  destiny,  and  of  those  reali¬ 
ties  which  await  us  beyond  the  tomb.  To  remain  insensible 
to  the  importance  of  such  an  inquiry,  and  unaffected  at  the 
prospect  of  the  result  to  which  it  may  lead, — while  we  are 
feelingly  alive  to  all  the  paltry  concerns  and  little  ills  of 
life, — would  argue  the  most  unaccountable  stupidity,  incon¬ 
sistency,  and  infatuation. 

The  man  whose  heart  pants  after  substantial  knowledge 
and  felicity,  whose  affections  centre  on  the  Author  of  his 
existence,  and  who" delights  to  contemplate  his  character  and 
perfections,  will  enter  with  pleasure  on  every  investigation, 
which  has  a  tendency  to  throw  a  light  on  the  scene  of  his 
future  destination.  He  will  weigh,  with  impartiality,  every 
consideration,  and  will  seize,  with  delight,  upon  every  argu¬ 
ment,  by  which  a  full  conviction  of  his  immortal  destiny  may 
be  indelibly  riveted  upon  his  mind;  and  he  will  endeavour 
to  cheer  his  soul  amidst  the  sorrows  of  mortality,  with  the 
consideration,  that  “  when  the  earthly  house  of  his  taberna¬ 
cle  is  dissolved,  he  has  a  building  of  God,  an  house  not  made 
with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens.” 


In  illustrating  the  evidences  of  a  future  state,  I  shall,  in 
the  first  place,  state  some  of  those  proofs  which  Reason,  cr 
the  light  of  nature,  furnishes,  of  man’s  eternal  destination — • 
and,  secondly ,  those  which  are  derived  frona  the  system  of 
Revelation. 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE 


17 


CHAPTER  I. 

PROOFS  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 

The  evidences  of  a  future  state  which  the  light  of  rea¬ 
son  affords,  though  not  so  ciear  and  decisive  as  those  which 
are  derived  from  Divine  Revelation,  are  worthy  of  the  se¬ 
rious  consideration  of  every  one  in  whose  mind  the  least 
doubt  remains  on  this  important  subject.  The  conviction 
they  are  calculated  to  produce,  when  attentively  weighed, 
is  sufficient  to  leave  every  one  without  excuse  w’ho  trifles 
with  the  concerns  of  his  future  destiny,  and  overlooks  his 
relation  to  the  eternal  world.  Though  the  Deity  is  invisi¬ 
ble  to  mortal  eyes,  yet  his  existence  and  perfections  are 
clearly  demonstrated  by  his  visible  operations,  and  he  has 
not  left  himself  without  a  witness  to  his  beneficence,  in 
any  age,  “  in  his  giving  rain  from  heaven,  and  fruitful  sea¬ 
sons,  and  filling  our  hearts  with  food  and  gladness.”  In 
like  manner,  though  the  realities  of  a  future  world  are  not 
presented  directly  to  the  eye  of  sense,  yet  the  faculties  with 
which  man  is  endowed,  when  properly  exercised  on  all  the 
physical  and  moral  scenes  which  the  universe  displays,  are 
sufficient  to  evince  the  high  degree  of  probability,  if  not 
absolute  certainty,  that  his  duration  and  his  sphere  of  ac¬ 
tion  are  not  confined  to  the  narrow  limits  of  the  present 
world,  but  have  a  relation  to  a  future  and  an  immortal  ex¬ 
istence.' — In  illustrating  this  topic,  I  shall  waive  the  consi¬ 
deration  of  several  of  those  metaphysical  arguments  which 
have  been  adduced  by  philosophers  and  divines,  founded 
on  the  immateriality  of  the  human  soul,  and  confine  myself 
chiefly  to  those  popular  considerations,  which  arc  level  to 
every  capacity,  and,  perhaps,  more  convincing  than  the  sub¬ 
tle  and  refined  disquisitions  of  metaphysical  minds. 

SECTION  i. 

On  the  Universal  Belief  which  the  doctrine  of  immortality 
has  obtained  in  all  ages. 

It  forms  a  presumptive  proof  of  the  immortality  of  man, 
that  this  doctrine  has  obtained  universal  belief  among  all 
nations,  and  in  every  period  of  time. 

That  the  thinking  principle  in  man  is  of  an  immortal  na¬ 
ture,  was  believed  by  the  ancient  Egyptians,  the  Persians, 
the  Phenicians,  the  Scythians,  the  Celts,  the  Druids,  the 


18 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


Assyrians, — by  the  wisest  and  the  most  celebrated  charac¬ 
ters  among  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  and  by  almost  every 
other  ancient  nation  and  tribe  whose  records  have  reached 
our  times.  The  notions,  indeed,  which  many  of  them  en¬ 
tertained  of  the  scenes  of  futurity  were  very  obscure  and 
imperfect,  but  they  all  embraced  the  idea,  that  death  is  not 
the  destruction  of  the  rational  soul,  but  only  its  introduction 
to  a  new  and  unknown  state  of  existence.  The  ancient 
Scythians  believed  that  death  was  only  a  change  of  habita¬ 
tion  ;  and  the  Magian  sect,  which  prevailed  in  Babylonia, 
Media,  Assyria,  and  Persia,  admitted  the  doctrine  of  eternal 
rewards  and  punishments.  The  doctrines  taught  by  the  sec¬ 
ond  Zoroaster,  who  lived  in  the  time  of  Darius,  were,  “that 
there  is  one  Supreme  Being,  independent  and  self-existent 
from  all  eternity;  that  under  him  there  are  two  angels,  one 
the  angel  of  light,  who  is  the  author  of  all  good  ;  and  the 
other  the  angel  of  darkness,  who  is  the  author  of  all  evil ; 
that  they  are  in  a  perpetual  struggle  with  each  other ;  that 
where  the  angel  of  light  prevails,  there  good  reigns  ;  and 
that  where  the  angel  of  darkness  prevails,  there  evil  takes 
place;  that  this  struggle  shall  continue  to  the  end  of  the 
world  ;  that  then  there  shall  be  a  general  resurrection  and 
a  day  of  judgment,  wherein  all  shall  receive  a  just  retribu¬ 
tion  according  to  their  works.  After  which,  the  angel  of 
darkness  and  his  disciples  shall  go  into  a  world  of  their 
own,  where  they  shall  suffer  in  everlasting  darkness,  the 
punishment  of  their  evil  deeds;  and  the  angel  of  light  and 
liis  disciples  shall  also  go  into  a  world  of  their  own,  where 
they  shall  receive,  in  everlasting  light,  the  reward  due  to 
their  good  deeds;  that  after  this  they  shall  remain  sepa¬ 
rated  for  ever,  and  light  and  darkness  be  no  more  mixed  to 
all  eternity.”*  The  remains  of  this  sect,  which  are  scattered 
over  Persia  and  India,  still  hold  the  same  doctrines,  with¬ 
out  any  variation,  even  to  this  day. 

It  is  well  known,  that  Plato,  Socrates,  and  other  Greek 
Philosophers,  held  the  doctrine  of  the  soul’s  immortality. 
In  his  admirable  dialogue,  entitled,  “The  Phaedon,”  Plato 
represents  Socrates,  a  little  before  his  death,  encompassed 
with  a  circle  of  philosophers,  and  discoursing  with  them 
on  the  arguments  which  prove  the  eternal  destiny  of  man. 

“When  the  dead,”  says  he,  “  are  arrived  at  the  rendez¬ 
vous  of  departed  souls,  whither  their  angel  conducts  them, 
they  are  all  judged.  Those  wdio  have  passed  their  lives  in 
*  Rollin’s  Ancient  History,  Vol.  2. 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


10 


a  manner  neither  entirely  criminal,  nor  absolutely  innocent, 
are  sent  into  a  place  where  they  suffer  pains  proportioned 
to  their  faults,  till,  being  purged  and  cleansed  of  their  guilt, 
and  afterwards  restored  to  liberty,  they  receive  the  reward 
of  the  good  actions  they  have  done  in  the  body.  Those 
who  are  judged  to  be  incurable,  on  account  of  the  greatness 
of  their  crimes,  the  fatal  Destiny  that  passes  judgment 
upon  them,  hurls  them  into  Tartarus,  from  whence  they 
never  depart.  Those  who  are  found  guilty  of  crimes,  great 
indeed,  but  worthy  of  pardon,  who  have  committed  violen¬ 
ces,  in  the  transports  of  rage,  against  their  father  or  mother, 
or  have  killed  some  one  in  a  like  emotion,  and  afterwards 
repented — suffer  the  same  punishment  with  the  last,  but  for 
a  time  only,  till,  by  prayers  and  supplications,  they  have 
obtained  pardon  from  those  they  have  injured.  But  those 
who  have  passed  through  life  with  peculiar  sanctity  of 
manners,  are  received  on  high  into  a  pure  region,  where 
they  live  without  their  boxlies  to  all  eternity,  in  a  series  of 
joys  and  delights  which  cannot  be  described.”  From  such 
considerations  Socrates  concludes,  “If  the  soul  be  immortal, 
it  requires  to  be  cultivated  with  attention,  not  only  for  what 
we  call  the  time  of  life,  but  for  that  which  is  to  follow,  I 
mean  eternity;  and  the  least  neglect  in  this  point  may  be 
atttended  with  endless  consequences.  If  death  were  the 
final  dissolution  of  being,  the  wicked  would  be  great  gain¬ 
ers  by  it,  by  being  delivered  at  once  from  their  bodies, 
their  souls,  and  their  vices ;  but  as  the  soul  is  immortal,  it 
has  no  other  means  of  being  freed  from  its  evils,  nor  any 
safety  for  it,  but  in  becoming  very  good  and  very  wise ; 
for  it  carries  nothing  with  it,  but  its  good  or  bad  deeds, 
its  virtues  and  vices,  which  are  commonly  the  conse¬ 
quences  of  the  education  it  has  received,  and  the  causes 
of  eternal  happiness  or  misery.”  Having  held  such  dis¬ 
courses  with  his  friends,  he  kept  silent  for  some  time,  and 
then  drank  off  the  whole  of  the  poisonous  draught  which 
had  been  put  into  his  hand,  with  amazing  tranquility,  and 
an  inexpressible  serenity  of  aspect,  as  one  who  was  about 
to  exchange  a  short  and  wretched  life,  for  a  blessed  and  eter¬ 
nal  existence. 

The  descriptions  and  allusions  contained  in  the  writings 
of  the  ancient  poets,  are  a  convincing  proof,  that  the  notion 
of  the  soul’s  immortality  was  a  universal  opinion  in  the 
times  in  which  they  wrote,  and  among  the  nations  to  whom 
their  writings  were  addressed.  Homer’s  account  of  the 


20 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


descent  of  Ulysses  into  hell,  and  his  description  of  Minos 
in  the  shades  below,  distributing  justice  to  the  dead  assem 
bled  in  troops  around  his  tribunal,  and  pronouncing  irrevo¬ 
cable  judgments,  which  decide  their  everlasting  fate,  de¬ 
monstrate,  that  they  entertained  the  belief,  that  virtues  are 
rewarded,  and  that  crimes  are  punished,  in  another  state  of 
-*  existence.  The  poems  of  Ovid  and  Virgil  contain  a  variety 
of  descriptions,  in  which  the  same  opinions  are  involved 
Their  notions  of  future  punishment  are  set  forth  in  the  de¬ 
scriptions  they  give  of  Ixion,  who  was  fastened  to  a  wheel, 
and  whirled  about  continually  with  a  swift  and  rapid  mo¬ 
tion — of  Tantalus,  who,  for  the  loathsome  banquet  he  made 
for  the  gods,  was  set  in  water  up  to  the  chin,  with  apples 
hanging  to  his  very  lips,  yet  had  no  power  either  to  stoop 
to  the  one  to  quench  his  raging  thirst,  or  to  reach  to  the 
other  to  satisfy  his  craving  appetite — of  the  Fifty  Daugh¬ 
ters  of  Danaus,  who,  for  the  barbarous  massacre  of  their 
husbands  in  one  night,  were  condemned  in  hell  to  fill  a  bar 
rel  full  of  holes  with  water,  which  ran  out  again  as  fast  as 
it  was  tilled — of  Sisyphus,  who,  for  his  robberies,  was  set 
to  roll  a  great  stone  up  a  steep  hill,  which,  when  it  was  just 
at  the  top,  suddenly  fell  down  again,  and  so  renewed  his 
labour — and  of  Tityus,  who  was  adjudged  to  have  a  vulture 
to  feed  upon  his  liver  and  entrails,  which  still  grew  and  in¬ 
creased  as  they  were  devoured.  Their  notions  of  future 
happiness  are  embodied  in  the  descriptions  they  have  given 
of  the  Hesperian  gardens,  and  the  Elysian  fields,  where  the 
souls  of  the  virtuous  rest  secure  from  every  danger,  and 
enjoy  perpetual  and  uninterrupted  bliss. 

And  as  the  nations  of  antiquity  recognized  the  doctrine 
of  a  future  state  of  existence,  so  there  is  scarcely  a  nation 
or  tribe  of  mankind,  presently  existing,  however  barbarous 
and  untutored,  in  which  the  same  opinion  does  not  prevail. 
The  natives  of  the  Society  Isles  believe,  that  after  death, 
there  is  not  only  a  state  of  conscious  existence,  but  degrees 
of  eminence  and  felicity,  according  as  men  have  been  more 
or  less  pleasing  to  the  Eatova,  or  Deity,  while  upon  earth. 
The  chiefs  of  the  Friendly  Islands  believe  in  the  immor¬ 
tality  of  the  soul,  which,  at  death,  they  say  is  immediately 
conveyed  in  a  fast-sailing  canoe,  to  a  distant  country,  called 
Doobludha,  which  they  describe  as  resembling  the  Maho¬ 
metan  paradise, — that  those  who  are  conveyed  thither  are 
no  more  subject  to  death,  but  feast  on  all  the  favourite  pro 
ductions  of  their  native  soil,  with  which  this  blissful  abode 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


21 


is  plentifully  furnished.  The  New  Zealanders  believe,  that 
the  third  day  after  the  interment  of  a  man,  the  heart  sepe- 
rates  itself  from  the  corpse,  and  that  this  separation  is  an¬ 
nounced  by  a  general  breeze  of  wind,  which  gives  warning 
of  its  approach,  by  an  inferior  divinity  that  hovers  over  the 
grave,  and  who  carries  it  to  the  clouds.  They  believe  that 
the  soul  of  the  man  whose  flesh  is  devoured  by  the  enemy, 
is  doomed  to  a  perpetual  fire,  while  the  soul  of  the  man 
whose  body  has  been  rescued  from  those  that  killed  him, 
and  the  souls  of  all  who  die  a  natural  death,  ascend  to  the 
habitations  of  the  gods.  The  inhabitants  of  the  Pelew  Isl¬ 
ands,  according  to  the  account  of  Captain  Wilson,  although 
they  have  few  religious  rites  and  ceremonies,  believe  in  one 
Supreme  Being,  and  in  a  future  state  of  rewards  and  pun¬ 
ishments.  In  the  religion  of  the  Kalmuc  Tartars ,  the  doc¬ 
trine  of  a  future  state  holds  a  conspicuous  place.  They 
believe  that  hell  is  situated  in  the  middle  region,  between 
heaven  and  earth,  and  their  devils  are  represented  with  all 
sorts  of  frightful  forms,  of  a  black  and  hideous  aspect,  with 
the  heads  of  goats,  lions,  and  unicorns.  Their  holy  Lamas, 
who  have  obtained  a  victory  over  all  their  passions,  are  sup¬ 
posed  to  pass  immediately  into  heaven,  where  they  enjoy 
perfect  rest,  and  exercise  themselves  in  divine  service.  The 
Samoiedians  of  Northern  Tartary  believe,  that  there  is  one 
Supreme  Being,  that  he  is  our  all-merciful  and  common  Pa-  * 
rent,  and  that  he  will  reward  with  a  happy  state  hereafter, 
those  who  live  virtuously  in  this  world.  The  Birmans  be¬ 
lieve  in  the  transmigration  of  souls,  after  which,  they  main¬ 
tain,  that  the  radically  bad  will  be  sentenced  to  lasting  pun¬ 
ishment,  while  the  good  will  enjoy  eternal  happiness  on  a 
mountain  called  Meru. 

The  various  tribes  which  inhabit  the  continent  of  Africa, 
in  so  far  as  we  are  acquainted  with  their  religious  opinions, 
appear  to  recognize  the  doctrine  of  a  future  state.  “  I  was 
lately  discoursing  on  this  subject,”  says  Mr.  Addison,  in  one 
of  his  Spectators,  “  with  a  learned  person,  who  has  been 
very  much  conversant  among  the  inhabitants  of  the  most 
western  parts  of  Africa.  Upon  his  conversing  with  several 
in  that  country,  he  tells  me,  that  their  notions  of  heaven,  or 
of  a  future  state  of  happiness,  is  this — that  every  thing  we 
there  wish  for  will  immediately  present  itself  to  us.  We 
find,  say  they,  that  our  souls  are  of  such  a  nature  that  they 
require  variety,  and  are  not  capable  of  being  always  delight¬ 
ed  with  the  same  objects.  The  Supreme  Being,  therefore, 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


in  compliance  with  this  taste  of  happiness  which  he  has  im¬ 
planted  in  the  soul  of  man,  will  raise  up,  from  time  to  time, 
say  they,  every  gratification  which  it  is  in  the  human  nature  to 
be  pleased  with.  If  we  wish  to  be  in  groves  or  bowers, 
among  running  streams  or  falls  of  water,  we  shall  immedi¬ 
ately  find  ourselves  in  the  midst  of  such  a  scene  as  we  desire. 
If  we  would  be  entertained  with  music,  and  the  melody  of 
sounds,  the  concert  arises  upon  our  wish,  and  the  whole  re¬ 
gion  about  us  is  filled  with  harmony.  In  short,  every  desire 
will  be  followed  by  fruition  ;  and  whatever  a  man’s  inclina¬ 
tion  directs  him  to,  will  be  present  with  him.”  The  Negroes, 
and  other  inhabitants  of  the  interior  of  Africa,  according  to 
the  account  of  Mr.  Park,  believe  in  one  Supreme  Ruler, 
and  expect  hereafter  to  enter  into  a  state  of  misery  or  feli¬ 
city.  The  Gallas  of  Abyssinia,  though  they  reject  the  doc¬ 
trine  of  future  punishment,  admit  the  reality  of  a  future 
state.  The  Mandingoes,  the  Jalofl’s,  the  Feloops,  the  Fou 
lahs,  the  Moors,  and  all  the  other  tribes  who  have  embraced 
the  Mahometan  faith,  recognize  the  doctrine  of  the  immor¬ 
tality  of  the  soul,  and  of  future  rewards  in  a  celestial  para¬ 
dise.  The  natives  of  Dahomy  entertain  the  same  belief; 
and  hence  it  is  a  common  practice  with  the  sovereign  of  that 
country,  to  send  an  account  to  his  forefathers  of  any  remark¬ 
able  event,  by  delivering  a  message  to  whoever  may  happen 
to  be  near  him  at  the  time,  and  then  ordering  his  head  to  be 
chopped  off  immediately,  that  he  may  serve  as  a  courier,  to 
convey'  intelligence  to  the  world  of  spirits.* 

The  Persians  are  said  to  leave  one  part  of  their  graves 
open,  from  a  belief,  that  the  dead  will  be  reanimated,  and 
visited  by  angels,  who  will  appoint  them  to  their  appropri¬ 
ate  abodes  in  a  future  state.  From  a  similar  belief,  thou¬ 
sands  of  Hindoo  widows  annually  sacrifice  themselves  on 
the  funeral  piles  of  their  deceased  husbands,  in  the  hope  of 
enjoying  with  them  the  felicities  of  eternal  life. — The  Japa¬ 
nese  believe  that  the  souls  of  men  and  beasts  are  alike  im¬ 
mortal;  that  a  just  distribution  of  rew  ards  and  punishments 
takes  place  after  death;  that  there  are  different  degrees  of 
happiness,  as  well  as  of  punishment,  and  that  the  souls  of 
the  wicked  transmigrate,  after  death,  into  the  bodies  of  ani¬ 
mals,  and  at  last,  in  case  of  amendment,  are  translated  back 
again  into  the  human  form.t  From  a  conviction  of  the  reali¬ 
ty  of  a  future  world,  the  Wahabee  Arabs  regard  it  as  impi- 


*  M’Leod’s  Voyage  to  Africa,  1820,  p.  64.  t  Thunberg’s  Travels. 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


23 


ous  to  mourn  for  the  dead,  who,  they  say,  are  enjoying  fe¬ 
licity  with  Mahomet  in  paradise ;  and  the  Javanese  make 
several  feasts,  on  the  decease  of  their  friends  and  relations, 
to  commemorate  their  entrance  into  a  world  of  bliss. — The 
North  American  Indians  believe  that  beyond  the  most  dis¬ 
tant  mountains  of  their  country,  there  is  a  wide  river;  be¬ 
yond  that  river  a  great  country;  on  the  other  side  of  that 
country,  a  world  of  water;  in  that  water  are  a  thousand 
islands,  full  of  trees  and  streams  of  water,  and  that  a  thou¬ 
sand  buffaloes,  and  ten  thousand  deer,  graze  on  the  hills,  oi 
ruminate  in  the  valleys.  When  they  die,  they  are  persuad 
ed  that  the  Great  Spirit  will  conduct  them  to  this  land  of 
souls. 

Thus  it  appears,  that  not  only  the  philosophers  of  an¬ 
tiquity,  and  the  most  civilized  nations  presently  existing  on 
the  globe,  have  recognized  the  doctrine  of  the  immortality 
of  man,  but  that  even  the  most  savage  and  untutored  tribes 
fortify  their  minds  in  the  prospect  of  death,  with  the  hope  of 
a  happiness  commensurate  to  their  desires,  in  the  regions 
beyond  the  grave. 

“Even  the  poor  Indian  whose  untutor’d  mind 
Sees  God  in  clouds,  or  hears  him  in  the  wind, 

Whose  soul  proud  science  never  taught  to  stray 
Far  as  the  solar  walk  or  milky  way — 

Yet  simple  nature  to  his  hope  has  given 
Behind  the  cloud-topt  hill,  an  humbler  heaveiPp 
Some  safer  world  ih  depth  of  woods  embraced, 

Some  happier  island  in  the  watery  waste. 

Where  slaves  once  more  their  native  land  behold, 

No  fiends  torment,  no  Christians  thirst  for  sold, — 

And  thinks,  admitted  to  yon  equal  sky, 

His  faithful  dog  shall  bear  him  company.”  port-,. 

Among  the  numerous  and  diversified  tribes  that  are  scat¬ 
tered  over  the  different  regions  of  the  earth,  that  agree  in 
scarcely  any  other  sentiment  or  article  of  religious  belief, 
we  here  find  the  most  perfect  harmony,  in  their  recognition 
of  a  Supreme  Intelligence,  and  in  their  belief  that  the  soul 
survives  the  dissolution  of  its  mortal  frame.  And,  as  Cicero 
long  since  observed,  “In  every  thing  the  consent  of  all  na¬ 
tions  is  to  be  accounted  the  law  of  nature,  and  to  resist  it, 
is  to  resist  the  voice  of  God.”  For  we  can  scarcely  suppose, 
in  consistency  with  the  Divine  perfections,  that  an  error,  on  a 
subject  of  so  vast  importance  to  mankind,  should  obtain  the 
universal  belief  of  all  nations  and  ages,  and  that  God  himself 
would  suffer  a  world  of  rational  beings,  throughout  every 


24 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


generation,  to  be  carried  away  by  a  delusion,  and  to  be  tan¬ 
talized  by  a  hope  which  has  no  foundation  in  nature,  and 
which  is  contrary  to  the  plan  of  his  moral  government.  It 
is  true,  indeed,  that  several  of  the  opinions  to  which  I  have 
now  adverted,  and  many  others  which  prevail  among  the 
uncivilized  tribes  of  mankind,  in  regard  to  the  condition  of 
disembodied  spirits,  and  the  nature  of  future  happiness,  are 
very  erroneous  and  imperfect;  but  they  all  recognize  this 
grand  and  important  truth,  that  death  is  not  the  destruction 
of  the  rational  soul,  and  that  man  is  destined  to  an  immor¬ 
tal  existence.  T^eir  erroneous  conceptions  in  respect  to  the 
rewards  and  punishments  of  the  future  world  may  be  easily 
accounted  for,  from  a  consideration  of  the  imperfect  con¬ 
ceptions  they  have  formed  of  the  Divine  Being,  and  of  the 
principles  of  his  moral  government ;  from  their  ignorance 
of  those  leading  principles  and  moral  laws,  by  which  the 
Almighty  regulates  the  intelligent  universe  ;  from  the  false 
ideas  they  have  been  led  to  entertain  respecting  the  nature 
of  substantial  happiness ;  from  the  cruel  and  absurd  practi¬ 
ces  connected  with  the  system  of  Pagan  superstition;  from 
the  intellectual  darkness  which  has  brooded  over  the  human 
race  ever  since  the  fall  of  man ;  and  from  the  universal 
prevalence  of  those  depraved  dispositions  and  affections, 
which  characterize  the  untutored  tribes  on  whom  the  light 
of  Revelation  has  never  shone. 

To  whatever  cause  this  universal  belief  of  a  future  exist¬ 
ence  is  to  be  traced — wrhether  to  a  universal  tradition  deriv¬ 
ed  from  the  first  parents  of  the  human  race;  to  an  innate 
sentiment  originally  impressed  on  the  soul  of  man ;  to  a 
Divine  revelation  disseminated  and  handed  down  from  onq 
generation  to  another,  or  to  the  deductions  of  human  rea¬ 
son — it  forms  a  strong  presumption,  and  a  powerful  argu¬ 
ment,  in  favour  of  the  position  we  are  now  endeavouring 
to  support.  If  it  is  to  be  traced  back  to  the  original  pro¬ 
genitors  of  mankind,  it  must  be  regarded  as  one  of  those 
truths  which  were  recognized  by  man  in  a  state  of  inno¬ 
cence,  when  his  affections  were  pure,  and  his  understanding 
fortified  against  delusion  and  error.  If  it  be  a  sentiment 
which  was  orignially  impressed  on  the  human  soul  by  the 
hand  of  its  Creator,  we  do  violence  to  the  law  of  our  nature, 
when  we  disregard  its  intimations,  or  attempt  to  resist  the 
force  of  its  evidence.  If  it  ought  to  be  considered  as  ori¬ 
ginally  derived  from  Revelation,  then  it  is  corroborative  of 
the  truth  of  the  Sacred  Records,  in  which  “life  and  imrnor- 


PROOfS  FROM  THE  EIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


25 


tality”  are  clearly  exhibited.  And,  if  it  be  regarded  as  like¬ 
wise  one  of  the  deductions  of  natural  reason,  we  are  left 
without  excuse,  if  we  attempt  to  obscure  its  evidence,  or 
to  overlook  the  important  consequences  which  it  involves. — 
As  the  consent  of  all  nations  has  been  generally  considered 
as  a  powerful  argument  for  the  existence  of  a  Deity,  so  the 
universal  belief  of  mankind  in  the  doctrine  of  a  future  state 
ought  to  be  viewed  as  a  strong  presumption,  that  it  is  found¬ 
ed  upon  truth.  The  human  mind  is  so  constituted,  that, 
when  left  to  its  native  unbiassed  energies,  it  necessarily  in¬ 
fers  the  existence  of  a  Supreme  Intelligence,  from  the  ex¬ 
istence  of  matter,  and  the  economy  of  the  material  world ; 
and,  from  the  nature  of  the  human  faculties,  and  the  moral 
attributes  of  God,  it  is  almost  as  infallibly  led  to  conclude, 
t'hat  a  future  existence  is  necessary,  in  order  to  gratify  the 
boundless  desires  of  the  human  soul,  and  to  vindicate  the 
wisdom  and  rectitude  of  the  moral  Governor  of  the  world. 
These  two  grand  truths,  which  constitute  the  foundation  of 
all  religion,  and  of  every  thing  that  is  interesting  to  man  as 
an  intelligent  agent,  are  interwoven  with  the  theologica- 
c-reed  of  all  nations ;  and,  in  almost  every  instance,  where 
the  one  is  called  in  question  the  other  is  undermined  or  de¬ 
nied:  so  that  the  doctrine  of  the  immortality  of  man  may 
be  considered  as  resting  on  the  same  foundation  as  the  ex¬ 
istence  of  a  Supreme  Intelligence. 

It  must  indeed  be  admitted,  that  individuals  have  appear¬ 
ed,  in  every  age,  who  have  endeavoured  to  call  in  question, 
or  to  deny,  this  fundamental  truth.  But  this  circumstance 
forms  no  valid  objection  to  the  force  of  the  argument  to 
which  I  have  now  adverted.  For  the  number  of  such  per¬ 
sons  has  been  extremely  small,  when  compared  with  the 
mass  of  mankind;  and  their  opinions  on  this  subject  have 
generally  originated  either  from  wilful  ignorance;  from  an 
affectation  of  singularity  and  of  appearing  superior  to  vul¬ 
gar  fears;  or  from  indulging  in  a  course  of  wickedness  and 
impiety,  which  has  led  them  to  wish,  and  if  possible  to  be¬ 
lieve,  that  there  are  neither  punishments  nor  rewards  be¬ 
yond  the  grave.  If  it  appear  strange  and  unnatural  that 
any  man  should  wish  his  soul  to  be  mortal,  Hierocles  as¬ 
signs  the  true  reason  of  it:  “A  wicked  man,”  says  he,  “is 
afraid  of  his  judge,  and  therefore  wishes  his  soul  and  body 
may  perish  together  by  death,  rather  than  it  should  appear 
before  the  tribunal  of  God.”  If  a  number  of  fools  should 
think  fit  to  put  out  their  own  eyes,  to  prevent  them  from 


26  THE  UIIILOSOPHV  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 

feeling  the  effects  of  light,  as  Democritus,  the  ancient  phi¬ 
losopher,  was  said  to  have  done,  it  would  form  no  argument 
to  prove  that  all  the  rest  of  the  world  was  blind.  And,  it  a 
few  sceptics  and  profligates  endeavour  to  blind  the  eyes  of 
their  understanding  by  sophistry  and  licentiousness,  it  can¬ 
not  prevent  the  light  of  reason,  which  unveils  the  realities 
of  a  future  world,  from  shining  on  the  rest  of  mankind,  nor 
constitute  the  slightest  argument  to  prove  the  fallacy  of  the 
doctrine  they  deny. 

SECTION  II. 

On  the  desire  of  future  existence  implanted  in  the  human 

mind . 

Those  strong  and  restless  desires  after  future  existence  and 
enjoyment,  which  are  implanted  in  the  soul  of  man,  are  a 
strong  presumptive  proof  that  he  is  possessed  of  an  immor¬ 
tal  nature. 

There  is  no  human  being  who  feels  full  satisfaction  in  his 
present  enjoyments.  The  mind  is  for  ever  on  the  wing  in 
the  pursuit  of  new  acquirements,  of  new  objects,  and,  if 
possible,  of  higher  degrees  of  felicity,  than  the  present  mo¬ 
ment  can  afford.  However  exquisite  any  particular  enjoy¬ 
ment  may  sometimes  be  found,  it  soon  begins  to  lose  its 
relish,  and  to  pall  the  intellectual  appetite.  Hence  the  vo¬ 
racious  desire,  apparent  among  all  ranks,  for  variety  of 
amusements,  both  of  a  sensitive,  and  of  an  intellectual  na¬ 
ture.  Hence  the  keen  desire  for  novelty,  for  tales  of  won¬ 
der,  for  beautiful  and  splendid  exhibitions,  and  for  intelli¬ 
gence  respecting  the  passing  occurrences  of  the  day.  Hence 
the  eagerness  with  w^hich  the  daily  newspapers  are  read  by 
all  ranks  who  have  it  in  their  power  to  procure  them.  How¬ 
ever  novel  or  interesting  the  events  which  are  detailed  to¬ 
day,  an  appetite  for  fresh  intelligence  is  excited  before  to¬ 
morrow.  Amidst  the  numerous  objects  which  are  daily  so¬ 
liciting  attention,  amidst  the  variety  of  intelligence  which 
newsmongers  have  carefully  selected  for  the  gratification  of 
every  taste,  and  amidst  the  fictitious  scenes  depicted  by  the 
Novelist  and  the  Poet — “the  eye  is  not  satisfied  with  see¬ 
ing,  nor  the  ear  with  hearing.”  Hence,  too,  the  insatiable 
desires  of  the  miser  in  accumulating  riches,  and  the  unre¬ 
mitting  career  of  ambition,  in  its  pursuit  of  honours  and 
of  fame.  And  hence  the  ardour  with  which  the  philosopher 
prosecutes  one  discovery  after  another,  without  ever  arriv- 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


27 


ing  at  a  resting-point,  or  sitting  down  contented  with  his 
present  attainments.  When  Archimedes  had  discovered  the 
mode  of  determining  the  relative  quantities  of  gold  and 
silver  in  Hierovs  Crown,  did  he  rest  satisfied  with  this  new 
acquirement?  No.  The  ecstacy  he  felt  at  the  discovery, 
when  he  leaped  from  the  bath  and  ran  naked  through  the 
streets  of  Syracuse,  crying,  “I  have  found  it,  I  have  found 
it” — soon  subsided  into  indifference,  and  his  mind  pushed 
forward  in  quest  of  new  discoveries.  When  Newton  as¬ 
certained  the  law  of  universal  gravitation,  and  Franklin  dis¬ 
covered  the  identity  of  lightning  and  the  electric  fluid,  and 
felt  the  transports  which  such  discoveries  must  have  excited, 
did  they  slacken  their  pace  in  the  road  of  scientific  discove¬ 
ry,  or  sit  down  contented  with  their  past  researches?  No. 
One  discovery  gave  a  stimulus  to  the  pursuit  of  another,  ar.d 
their  career  of  improvement  only  terminated  with  their  lives. 
After  Alexander  had  led  his  victorious  armies  over  Persia, 
Babylonia,  Syria,  Egypt,  and  India,  and  had  conquered  the 
greater  part  of  the  known  world,  did  he  sit  down  in  peace, 
and  enjoy  the  fruit  of  his  conquests?  No.  His  desires  af¬ 
ter  new  projects,  and  new  expeditions,  remained  insatiable; 
his  ambition  rose  even  to  madness;  and  when  the  philoso¬ 
pher  Anaxarchus  told  him,  there  was  an  infinite  number  of 
worlds,  he  wept  at  the  thought  that  his  conquests  were  con¬ 
fined  to  one. 

These  restl-ess  and  unbounded  desires  are  to  be  fo-und 
agitating  the  breasts  of  men  of  all  nations,  of  all  ranks  and 
conditions  in  life.  If  we  ascend  the  thrones  of  princes,  if 
we  enter  the  palaces  of  the  great,  if  we  walk  through  the 
mansions  of  courtiers  and  statesmen,  if  we  pry  into  the 
abodes  of  poverty  and  indigence,  if  we  mingle  with  poets 
or  philosophers,  with  manufacturers,  merchants,  mechanics, 
peasants,  or  beggars  ;  if  we  survey  the  busy,  bustling  scene 
of  a  large  city,  the  sequestered  village,  or  the  cot  which 
stands  in  the  lonely  desert — we  shall  find,  in  every  situation, 
and  among  every  class,  beings  animated  with  desires  of  hap¬ 
piness,  which  no  present  enjoyment  can  gratify,  and  which 
no  object  within  the  limits  of  time  can  fully  satiate.  Whether 
we  choose  to  indulge  in  ignorance,  or  to  prosecute  the  path 
of  knowledge;  to  loiter  in  indolence,  or  to  exert  our  active 
powers  with  unremitting  energy ;  to  mingle  with  social  be¬ 
ings,  or  to  flee  to  the  haunts  of  solitude, — we  feel  a  vacuum 
in  the  mind,  which  nothing  around  us  can  fill  up  ;  a  longing 
after  new  objects  and  enjoyments,  which  nothing  earthly  can 


‘28  THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE 

fully  satisfy.  Regardless  of  the  past,  and  unsatisfied  with 
the  present,  the  soul  of  man  feasts  itself  on  the  hope  of  en¬ 
joyments  which  it  has  never  yet  possessed. 

“Hope  springs  eternal  in  the  human  breast; 

Man  never  is,  but  always  to  be  blest. 

The  soul  uneasy,  and  confined  from  hon 

Rests  and  expatiates  in  a  life  to  come.” 

That  the  desire  of  immortality  is  common,  and  natural  to 
all  men,  appears  from  a  variety  of  actions,  which  can  scarce¬ 
ly  be  accounted  for  on  any  other  principle,  and  which  prove 
that  the  mind  feels  conscious  of  its  immortal  destiny.  Why, 
otherwise,  should  men  be  anxious  about  their  reputation, 
and  solicitous  to  secure  their  names  from  oblivion,  and  to 
perpetuate  their  fame  after  they  have  descended  into  the 
grave?  To  accomplish  such  objects,  and  to  gratify  such 
desires,  poets,  orators,  and  historians,  have  been  flattered 
and  rewarded  to  celebrate  their  actions  ;  monuments  of  mar¬ 
ble  and  of  brass  have  been  erected  to  represent  their  per¬ 
sons,  and  inscriptions  engraved  in  the  solid  rock,  to  convey 
to  future  generations  a  record  of  the  exploits  they  had 
achieved.  Lofty  columns,  triumphal  arches,  towering  pyra¬ 
mids,  magnificent  temples,  palaces,  and  mausoleums,  have 
been  reared,  to  eternize  their  fame,  and  to  make  them  live, 
as  it  were,  in  the  eyes  of  their  successors,  through  all  the 
future  ages  of  time.  But,  if  the  soul  be  destined  to  destruc¬ 
tion  at  the  hour  of  death,  why  should  man  be  anxious  about 
what  shall  happen,  or  what  shall  not  happen  hereafter, 
when  he  is  reduced  to  a  mere  non-entity,  and  banished  for 
ever  from  the  universe  of  God?  He  can  have  no  interest 
in  any  events  that  may  befall  the  living  world  when  he 
is  cancelled  from  the  face  of  creation,  and  when  the  spark 
of  intelligence  he  possessed  is  quenched  in  everlasting 
night.  If  any  man  be  fully  convinced  that  the  grave  puts 
a  final  period  to  his  existence,  the  only  consistent  action  he 
can  perform,  when  he  finds  his  earthly  wishes  and  expec¬ 
tations  frustrated,  is  to  rush  into  the  arms  of  death,  and  rid 
himself  at  once  of  all  the  evils  connected  with  his  being. 
But  we  find  the  great  majority  of  mankind,  notwithstanding 
the  numerous  ills  to  which  they  are  subjected,  still  clinging 
with  eagerness  to  their  mortal  existence,  and  looking  for¬ 
ward,  with  a  certain  degree  of  hope,  to  a  termination  ct 
their  sorrows. 

— “They  rather  choose  to  bear  those  ills  they  have 
Than  fly  to  others  that  they  know  not  of.” 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE  29 

There  is,  I  presume,  no  individual  in  a  sound  state  of 
mind,  who  can  entirely  throw  aside  all  concern  about  his 
posthumous  reputation,  and  about  the  events  that  may  hap¬ 
pen  in  the  world  after  his  decease.  And  if  so,  it  clearly 
demonstrates,  not  only  that  he  does  not  wish,  but  that  he 
does  not  even  suppose  that  his  existence  will  be  for  ever 
extinguished  at  death.  The  idea  of  the  shame  of  being  ex¬ 
posed  naked  after  their  death,  produced  such  a  powerful 
effect  upon  the  minds  of  the  Milesian  virgins,  that  it  deter¬ 
red  them  from  putting  an  end  to  their  lives,  after  all  other 
arguments  had  been  tried  in  vain.*  The  desire  of  existence 
— and  of  existence  too,  which  has  no  termination,  appears 
to  be  the  foundation  of  all  our  desires,  and  of  all  the  plans 
we  form  in  life.  Annihilation  cannot  be  an  object  of  desire 
to  any  rational  being.  We  desire  something  that  is  real, 
something  that  is  connected  with  happiness  or  enjoyment, 
but  non-existence  has  no  object  nor  concern  whatever 
belonging  to  it.  When  a  wicked  man,  under  a  conscious¬ 
ness  of  guilt,  indulges  a  wish  for  annihilation  after  death,  it 
is  not  because  non-existence  is  in  itself  an  object  of  desire, 
but  he  would  choose  it  as  the  least  of  two  evils:  he  would 
rather  be  blotted  out  of  creation,  than  suffer  the  punish¬ 
ment  due  to  his  sins  in  the  eternal  world. 

It  may  also  be  remarked,  that  the  desire  of  immortality, 
however  vigorous  it  may  be  in  ordinary  minds,  becomes 
still  more  glowing  and  ardent  in  proportion  as  the  intellect 
is  cultivated  and  expanded  and  in  proportion  as  the  soul  rises 
to  higher  and  higher  degrees  of  virtue  and  moral  excellence. 
It  forms  a  powerful  stimulus  to  the  performance  of  actions 
which  are  noble,  generous,  public-spirited,  benevolent,  and 
humane,  and  which  have  a  tendency  to  promote  the  intel¬ 
lectual  improvement,  and  the  happiness  of  future  genera¬ 
tions.  Hence  the  most  illustrious  characters  of  the  hea¬ 
then  world,  the  poets,  the  orators,  the  moralists,  and  phi¬ 
losophers  of  antiquity,  had  their  minds  fired  with  the  idea 
of  immortality,  and  many  of  them  were  enabled  to  brave 
death  without  dismay,  under  the  conviction  that  it  was  the 

*  “I  beseech  men,  for  God’s  sake,  (says  Hale,)  that  if  at  any  time 
there  arise  in  them  a  desire  or  a  wish  that  others  should  speak  well 
of  their  death;  then  at  that  time  they  would  seriously  consider, 
whether  those  motions  are  not  from  some  spirit  to  continue  a  spirit, 
after  it  leaves  its  earthly  habitation,  rather  than  from  an  earthly  spirit, 
a  vapour  which  cannot  act,  or  imagine,  or  desire,  or  fear  things  beyond 
its  continuance.” 


3* 


30 


TIIE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


messenger  which  was  to  waft  their  spirits  to  the  realms  of 
endless  bliss.  When  Demosthenes  had  fled  for  shelter  to 
an  asylum  from  the  resentment  of  Antipater,  who  had  sent 
Archias  to  bring  him  by  force,  and  when  Archias  promised 
upon  his-  honour  that  he  should  not  lose  his  life,  if  he 
would  voluntarily  make  his  personal  appearance: — “God 
forbid,”  said  he,  “  that  after  I  have  heard  Xenocrates  and 
Plato  discourse  so  divinely  on  the  immortality  of  the  soul, 
I  should  prefer  a  life  of  infamy  and  disgrace  to  an  honour¬ 
able  death.”  Even  those  who  are  not  fully  convinced  of 
the  doctrine  of  immortality,  amidst  all  their  doubts  and  per¬ 
plexities  on  this  point,  earnestly  wished  that  it  wight  prove 
true ,  and  few  if  any  of  them  absolutely  denied  it. — Hence, 
too,  the  noble  and  disinterested  actions  which  Christian 
heroes  have  performed,  under  the  influence  of  unseen  and 
everlasting  things.  They  have  faced  dangers  and  persecu¬ 
tions  in  every  shape;  they  have  endured  “cruel  mockings, 
scourgings,  bonds,  and  imprisonments;”  they  have  tri¬ 
umphed  under  the  torments  of  the  rack,  and  amidst  the  rag¬ 
ing  flames;  they  have  surmounted  every  obstacle  in  their 
benevolent  exertions  to  communicate  blessings  to  their  fel¬ 
low  men;  they  have  braved  the  fury  of  the  raging  elements, 
traversed  sea  and  land,  and  pushed  their  way  to  distant 
barbarous  climes,  in  order  to  point  out  to  their  benighted 
inhabitants  the  path  that  leads  to  eternal  life.  Nor  do  they 
think  it  too  dear  to  sacrifice  their  lives  in  such  services, 
since  “they  desire  a  better  country,”  and  feel  assured  that 
death  will  introduce  them  to  “an  exceeding  great  and  an 
eternal  weight  of  glory.” 

Since,  then,  it  appears  that  the  desire  of  immortality  is 
common  to  mankind,  that  the  soxd  is  incessantly  looking 
forward  to  the  enjoyment  of  some  future  good,  and  that  this 
desire  has  been  the  spring  of  actions  the  most  beneficent,  and 
heroic,  on  what  principle  is  it  to  be  accounted  for? 

“  .Whence  springs  this  pleasing  hope,  this  fond  desire, 

This  longing  after  immortality? 

Or,  whence  this  secret  dread,  and  inward  horror 

Of  falling  into  nought? — Why  shrinks  the  soul 

Back  on  herself,  and  startles  at  destruction  ?” 

Whence  proceeds  the  want  we  feel  amidst  the  variety  of 
objec’ts  which  surround  us?  Whence  arises  the  disgust  that 
so  quickly  succeeds  every  enjoyment  ?  Wherefore  can  we 
never  cease  from  wishing  for  something  more  exquisite  than 
we  have  ever  yet  possessed?  No  satisfactory  answer  can 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


31 


be  given  to  such  questions,  if  our  duration  be  circumscribed 
within  the  limits  of  time ;  and  if  we  shall  be  blotted  out  of 
creation  when  our  earthly  tabernacles  are  laid  in  the  dust. — 
The  desires,  to  which  I  now  refer,  appear  to  be  an  essential 
part  of  the  human  constitution,  and,  consequently,  were  im¬ 
planted  in  our  nature  by  the  hand  of  our  Creator ; — and, 
therefore,  we  must  suppose,  either  that  the  desire  of  immor¬ 
tality  will  be  gratified,  or  that  the  Creator  takes  delight  in 
tantalizing  his  creatures  with  hopes  and  expectations  which 
will  end  in  eternal  disappointment.  To  admit  the  latter  sup¬ 
position,  would  be  inconsistent  with  every  rational  idea  we 
can  form  of  the  moral  attributes  of  the  Divinity.  It  would 
be  inconsistent  with  his  veracity ;  for  to  encourage  hopes 
and  desires  which  are  never  intended  to.  be  gratified,  is  the 
characteristic  of  a  deceiver,  and  therefore  contrary  to  every 
conception  we  can  form  of  the  conduct  of  “  a  God  of  truth.” 
It  would  be  inconsistent  with  his'  rectitude  ;  for  every  such 
deception  implies  an  act  of  injustice  towards  the  individual 
who  is  thus  tantalized.  It  would  be  inconsistent  with  his 
wisdom;  for  it  would  imply  that  he  has  no  other  means  of 
governing  the  intelligent  creation,  than  those  which  have  a 
tendency  to  produce  fallacious  hopes  and  fears  in  the  minds 
of  his  rational  offspring.  It  would  be  inconsistent  with  his 
benevolence  ;  for  as  “  the  desire  accomplished  is  sweet  to  the 
soul,  ”  so  disappointed  hopes  uniformly  tend  to  produce 
misery.  Yet  the  benevolence  of  the  Deity,  in  every  other 
point  of  view,  is  most  strikingly  displayed  in  all  his  arrange¬ 
ments  in  the  material  universe,  and  towards  every  species  ol 
sensitive  existence. 

What  has  been  now  stated  in  relation  to  desire  and  hope, 
will  equally  apply  to  those  fears  and  apprehensions,  which 
frequently  arise  in  the  mind  in  reference  to  the  punishments 
of  a  future  world.  A  Being  possessed  of  perfect  benevo¬ 
lence  cannot  be  supposed  to  harass  his  intelligent  creatures, 
and  to  render  their  lives  bitter  with  alarming  apprehensions, 
for  which  there  is  not  the  slightest  foundation.  But,  if  there 
is  no  state  either  of  punishment  or  reward  beyond  the  grave, 
those  desires  of  immortal  duration,  which  seem  at  first  view  to 
elevate  man  above  the  other  inhabitants  of  this  globe,  actual¬ 
ly  place  him  below  the  level  of  the  beasts,  which  bound 
through  the  forests  and  lawns,  and  find  their  chief  enjoy¬ 
ment  in  browsing  on  the  grass.  They  are  alive  to  present 
enjoyment,  but  appear  to  have  no  anticipations  of  the  future ; 
they  feel  present  pain,  but  there  is  no  reason  to  believe  that 


32 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE.  » 


they  arc  ever  tormented  with  fears  or  forebodings  of  future 
punishment.  They  are  contented  with  the  organs  with 
which  Nature  has  furnished  them;  they  appear  fully  satisfi¬ 
ed  with  ranging  the  fields  and  feasting  on  the  herbage;  their 
desires  need  no  restraint,  and  their  wishes  are  completely 
gratified;  and  what  pleased  them  yesterday  will  likewise 
give  them  pleasure  to-morrow,  without  being  harassed  with 
insatiable  desires  after  novelty  and  variety.  They  live  di¬ 
vested  of  those  innumerable  cares  and  anxieties  which 
harass  and  perplex  the  children  of  men,  and  they  never 
wish  to  go  beyond  the  boundary  which  nature  prescribes. 
“The  ingenious  bee  constructs  commodious  cells,  but  never 
dreams  of  rearing  triumphal  arches  or  obelisks  to  decorate 
her  waxen  city,”  Through  ignorance  of  the  future,  they 
pass  from  life  to  death,  with  as  much  indifference  as  from 
watering  to  sleep,  or  from  labour  to  repose. — But  man, 
amidst  all  the  enjoyments  and  prospects  which  surround 
him,  feels  uneasy  and  unsatisfied,  because  he  pants  after 
happiness  infinite  in  duration.  His  hopes  and  desires  over¬ 
step  the  bounds  of  time  and  of  every  period  we  can  affix  to 
duration,  and  move  onward  through  a  boundless  eternity. 
And  if  he  is  to  be  for  ever  cut  off  from  existence  when  his 
body  drops  into  the  grave,  how  dismal  the  continued  appre¬ 
hension  of  an  everlasting  period  being  put  to  all  his  enjoy¬ 
ments  after  a  prospect  of  immortality  has  been  opened  to 
his  view ! 

H  ow  then  shall  we  account  for  these  anomalies?  how 
shall  we  reconcile  these  apparent  inconsistencies?  In  what 
light  shall  we  exhibit  the  conduct  of  the  Creator  so  as  to 
render  it  consistent  with  itself?  There  is  but  one  conclu¬ 
sion  we  can  form,  in  consistency  with  the  moral  attributes 
of  God,  which  will  completely  unravel  the  mystery  of  man 
being  animated  with  unbounded  desires,  and  yet  confined  to 
a  short  and  limited  duration  in  the  present  world,  and  that 
is, — that  this  world  is  not  the  place  of  our  final  destination, 
but  introductory  to  a  more  glorious  and  permanent  state  of 
existence,  where  the  desires  of  virtuous  minds  will  be  com¬ 
pletely  gratified,  and  their  hopes  fully  realized.  I  do  not 
see  how  any  other  conclusion  can  be  drawn,  without  deny¬ 
ing  both  the  moral  character,  and  even  the  very  existence  of 
the  Deity. 


33 


TROOPS  FR  OM  THE  LIGHT^  OF  NATURE. 

SECTION  III. 

On  the  intellectual  faculties  of  man,  and  the  strong  desire 

of  knowledge  which  is  implanted  in  the  human  mind. 

The  principle  of  curiosity,  or  the  strong  desire  of  know¬ 
ledge  which  is  implanted  in  the  mind  of  man,  and  the  noble 
intellectual  faculties,  for  acquiring  it,  with  which  he  is  en¬ 
dowed,  are  evidences  and  proofs  of  his  immortal  destina¬ 
tion. 

Though  this  argument  may  be  considered,  by  some,  as 
only  a  branch  of  the  preceding,  it  may  not  be  inexpedient, 
for  the  sake  of  impression,  to  consider  it  separately,  as  it 
will  admit  of  reasonings  and  illustrations  distinct  from  those 
which  have  now  been  brought  forward. 

The  desire  of  knowledge  is  natural  to  every  rational  be 
ing,  and  appears  to  be  a  fundamental  part  of  the  constitu 
tion  of  the  human  mind.  It  is  perceptible  even  in  the  first 
stage  of  its  progress,  and  has  a  powerful  influence  over  the 
movements  and  the  enjoyments  of  the  young.  Present  to 
a  child  a  beautiful  landscape,  as  exhibited  through  an  opti¬ 
cal  machine,  and  it  will  be  highly  delighted  with  the  exhibi¬ 
tion.  Present  a  second  and  a  third  of  a  different  descrip¬ 
tion,  in  succession,  and  its  delight  will  be  increased ;  it  will 
anxiously  desire  exhibitions  of  new  and  varied  objects,  and 
its  curiosity  will  never  be  satisfied  but  with  a  constant  suc¬ 
cession  of  scenes  and  objects  which  tend  to  widen  the  circle 
of  its  knowledge,  and  enlarge  the  capacity  of  its  mind. 
Hence  the  keen  desires  of  the  young  for  shows,  spectacles, 
processions,  and  public  exhibitions  of  every  description,  and 
the  delight  which  they  feel  in  making  excursions  from  one 
scene  to  another.  Hence  the  delight  with  which  travellers 
traverse  the  Alpine  scenes  of  nature,  cross  seas  and  oceans, 
descend  into  the  gloomy  subterraneous  cavern,  or  climb  to 
the  summit  of  the  flaming  volcano,  notwithstanding  the 
fatigues  and  perils  to  which  they  are  exposed. 

“  For  such  the  bounteous  providence  of  Heaven 
In  every  breast  implanting  the  desire 
Of  objects  new  and  strange,  to  urge  us  on 
With  unremitted  labour  to  pursue 
Those  sacred  stores  that  wait  the  ripening  soul, 

In  Truth’s  exhaustless  bosom. - 

- For  this  the  daring  youth 

Breaks  from  his  weeping  mother's  anxious  arms, 

In  foreign  chines  to  rove;  the  pensive  sage 
Heedless  of  sleep,  or  midnight’s  harmful  damp. 


34 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


Hangs  o’er  the  sickly  taper;  and  untired 
The  virgin  follows  with  enchanted  step 
The  mazes  of  some  wild  and  wondrous  tale, 

From  morn  to  eve.” -  akenside. 

If  the  desire  of  knowledge  appears,  in  many  instances, 
to  be  less  ardent  in  afterlife,  it  is  owingin  a  great  measure 
to  the  methods  of  our  education,  and  the  false  principles  on 
which  we  attempt  to  convey  instruction  to  the  youthful 
mind.  Our  initiatory  instructions,  hitherto,  present  the 
young  with  little  more  than  theArey  of  knowledge,  instead  of 
knowledge  itself.  We  lead  them  to  the  threshold  of  the 
temple  of  science  without  attempting  to  unfold  its  treasures. 
We  deem  it  sufficient  that  they  be  taught  to  pronounce,  like 
a  number  of  puppets,  a  multitude  of  sounds  and  terms  to 
which  they  attach  no  distinct  conceptions,  while  we  decline 
to  communicate  clear  and  well-defined  ideas.  We  load 
their  memories  jwith  technical  phrases  and  propositions 
which  they  do  not  understand,  while  the  objects  of  substan¬ 
tial  science  are  carefully  concealed  both  from  the  eye  of 
sense  and  from  the  eyes  of  their  understandings.  Instead 
of  leading  them  by  gentle  steps,  in  the  lirst  stage  of  their 
progress,  over  the  grand,  and  beautiful,  and  variegated 
scenery  of  Nature  and  Revelation,  wffiere  almost  every  ob¬ 
ject  is  calculated  to  arrest  their  attention,  and  to  excite  ad¬ 
miration, — we  confound  them  wdth  an  unintelligible  jargon 
of  grammar  rules,  of  metaphysical  subtleties,  and  of  dead 
languages,  associated  with  stripes,  confinement,  and  painful 
recollections,  which  frequently  produce  a  disgust  at  every 
thing  which  has  acquired  the  name  of  learning,  before  they 
are  made  acquainted  with  that  in  which  true  knowledge 
consists.  Yet,  notwithstanding  the  injudicious  methods  by 
which  we  attempt  to  train  the  youthful  intellect,  it  is  im¬ 
possible  to  eradicate  the  desire  of  knowledge  from  the  hu¬ 
man  mind.  When  substantial  knowledge  is  presented  to 
the  mind,  in  a  judicious  and  alluring  manner,  if  will  not 
only  be  relished,  but  prosecuted  with  ardour  by  every  one 
whose  faculties  are  not  altogether  immersed  in  the  mire  of 
sensuality.  Let  a  man,  however  ignorant  and  untutored,  be 
made  acquainted  with  some  of  the  interesting  details  of 
Geography,  with  the  wonders  of  the  ocean,  and  the  numer¬ 
ous  rivers  continually  rolling  into  its  abyss,  with  the  lofty 
ranges  of  mountains  which  stretch  along  the  continents,  and 
project  their  summits  beyond  the  clouds,  with  the  volcanoes, 
the  tornadoes,  the  water-spouts,  and  the  sublime  and  beauti- 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


35 


ful  landscapes  which  diversify  the  different  climates  of  the 
earth;  with  the  numerous  tribes  of  animated  beings  which 
people  its  surface,  and  the  manners  and  customs  of  its  hu¬ 
man  inhabitants — he  will  feel  an  eager  desire  to  know  every 
thing  else  that  appertains  to  this  subject,  and  will  prosecute 
his  inquiries  with  avidity,  in  so  far  as  his  means  and  oppor¬ 
tunities  permit.  Acquaint  him  with  some  of  the  most  strik¬ 
ing  facts  in  ancient  and  modern  history,  and  he  will  feel  a 
desire  to  know  every  thing  of  importance  that  has  occurred 
in  the  annals  of  the  world  since  the  commencement  of  time. 
Unfold  to  him  some  of  the  discoveries  which  have  been  made 
in  relation  to  the  constitution  of  the  atmosphere,  the  electric, 
magnetic,  and  galvanic  fluids,  and  the  chemical  changes  and 
operations  that  are  constantly  going  on  in  the  animal,  vegeta¬ 
ble,  and  mineral  kingdoms,  and  his  curiosity  will  be  strongly 
excited  to  penetrate  still  farther  into  the  mysteries  of  nature. 
Direct  his  views  to  the  concave  of  the  firmament,  and  tell 
him  of  the  vast  magnitude  of  the  sun,  and  the  planetary 
globes,  the  amazing  velocity  with  which  they  run  their  des¬ 
tined  rounds,  and  of  the  immense  number  and  distances  of 
the  stars — and  he  will  eagerly  pant  after  more  minute  infor¬ 
mation  respecting  the  great  bodies  of  the  universe,  and  feel 
delighted  at  hearing  of  new  discoveries  being  made  in  the 
unexplored  regions  of  creation. 

I  never  knew  an  instance  in  which  knowledge  of  this 
description  was  communicated  in  a  rational ,  distinct,  and 
alluring  manner,  where  it  was  not  received  with  a  certain 
degree  of  pleasure,  and  with  an  ardent  desire  to  make  fur¬ 
ther  investigations  into  the  wonders  of  creating  Wisdom 
and  Power.  Such  appears  to  be  the  original  constitution 
of  the  human  mind,  that  it  is  necessarily  gratified  with 
every  thing  that  gives  scope  to  the  exercise  of  its  faculties, 
and  which  has  a  tendency  to  extend  the  range  of  their  ac¬ 
tion.  It  is  true,  indeed,  that,  in  some  men,  the  desire  of 
knowledge  appears  to  be  blunted  and  almost  annihilated, 
so  that  they  appear  to  be  little  superior  in  their  views  to 
the  lower  orders  of  sensitive  existence.  But  this  happens 
only  in  those  cases  where  the  intellectual  faculties  are  be 
numbed  and  stupified  by  indolence  and  sensuality.  Such 
persons  do  all  they  can  to  counteract  the  original  propensi¬ 
ties  of  their  nature  and  yet,  even  in  the  worst  cases  of  this 
kind  that  can  occur,  the  original  desire  is  never  altogether 
extirpated,  so  long  as  the  senses  are  qualified  to  perform 
their  functions.  For  the  most  brutish  man  is  never  found 


36 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


entirely  divested  of  the  principle  of  curiosity,  when  any  strik. 
ing  or  extraordinary  object  is  presented  to  his  view.  On 
such  an  occasion,  the  original  principles  of  his  constitution 
will  be  roused  into  action,  and  he  .will  feel  a  certain  degree 
of  wonder  and  delight  in  common  with  other  rational  minds. 

And,  as  man  has  a  natural  desire  after  knowledge,  and  a 
delight  in  it — so,  he  is  furnished  with  noble  faculties  and  vast 
capacities  of  intellect  for  enabling  him  to  acquire,  and  to 
treasure  it  up.  He  is  furnished  with  senses  calculated  to 
convey  ideas  of  the  forms,  qualities,  and  relations  of  the 
various  objects  which  surround  him.  His  sense  of  vision, 
in  particular,  appears  to  take  in  a  wider  range  of  objects, 
than  that  of  any  other  sensitive  being.  While  some  of  the 
lower  animals  have  their  vision  circumscribed  within  a  circle 
of  a  few  yards  or  inches  in  diameter,  the  eye  of  man  can  sur¬ 
vey,  at  one  glance,  an  extensive  landscape,  and  penetrate 
even  to  the  regions  of  distant  worlds.  To  this  sense  we  are 
indebted  for  our  knowledge  of  the  sublimest  objects  which 
can  occupy  the  mind,  and  for  the  ideas  we  have  acquired  of 
the  boundless  range  of  creation.  And,  while  it  is  fitted  to 
trace  the  motions  of  mighty  worlds,  which  roll  at  the  dis¬ 
tance  of  a  thousand  millions  of  miles,  it  is  also  so  constructed, 
as  to  enable  him,  with  the  assistance  of  art,  to  survey  the 
myriads  of  living  beings  which  people  a  drop  of  water. 
All  his  other  senses  are  likewise  calculated  to  extend  the 
range  of  his  knowledge,  to  enable  him  to  communicate  his 
ideas  to  others,  and  to  faciliate  the  mutual  interchanges  of 
thought  and  sentiment  between  rational  minds  of  a  similar 
construction  with  his  own. 

His  understanding  is  capable  of  taking  in  a  vast  variety 
of  sentiments  and  ideas  in  relation  to  the  immense  multi¬ 
plicity  of  objects  which  are  perceived  bv  his  external  senses. 
H  ence  the  various  sciences  he  has  cultivated,  the  sublime 
discoveries  he  has  made,  and  the  noble  inventions  he  has 
brought  to  light.  By  the  powers  of  his  understanding,  he 
has  surveyed  the  terraqueous  globe,  in  all  its  varieties  of 
land  and  water,  continents,  islands,  and  oceans,  determined 
its  magnitude,  its  weight,  its  figure,  and  motions;  explored 
its  interior  recesses,  descended  into  the  bottom  of  its  seas, 
arranged  and  classified  the  infinite  variety  of  vegetables, 
minerals,  and  animals  which  it  contains,  analysed  the  invisi¬ 
ble  atmosphere  with  which  it  is  surrounded,  and  determined 
the  elementary  principles  of  which  it  is  composed,  discover¬ 
ed  the  nature  of  thunder,  and  arrested  the  rapid  lightnings 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  TIGHT  OF  NATURE.  37 

in  their  course,  ascertained  the  laws  by  which  the  planets 
are  directed  in  their  courses,  weighed  the  masses  of  distant 
worlds,  determined  their;  size  and  distances,  and  explored 
regions  of  the  universe  invisible  to  the  unassisted  eye,  whose 
distance  exceeds  all  human  calculation  and  comprehension. 
The  sublime  sciences  of  Geometry,  Trignometry,  Conic 
Sections,  Fluxions,  Algebra,  and  other  branches  of  Mathe¬ 
matics,  evince  the  acuteness  and  perspicacity  of  his  intel¬ 
lect;  and  their  application  to  the  purposes  of  Navigation  and 
Geography,  and  to  the  determination  of  the  laws  of  the  ce 
lestial  motions,  the  periods  of.  their  revolutions,  their  eclip 
scs,  and  the  distances  at  which  they  are  placed  from  on 
sublunary  mansion,  demonstrate  the  vigour  and  compre 
hension  of  those  reasoning  faculties  with  which  he  is  en 
dowed. 

By  means  of  the  instruments  and  contrivances  which  hi 
inventive  faculty  has  enabled  him  to  form  and  construct  he 
can  transport  ponderous  masses  across  the  ocean,  determxt 
the  exact  position  in  which  he  is  at  any  lime  placed  upon  its 
surface,  direct  his  course  along  pathless  deserts  and  through 
the  billows  of  the  mighty  deep; — transform  a  portion  of 
steatn  into  a  mechanical  power,  for  impelling  wagons  along 
roads,  and  large  vessels  with  great  velocity  against  wind  and 
tide;  andean  even  transport  himself  through  the  yielding 
air  beyond  the  region  of  the  clouds.  He  can  explore  the 
invisible  worlds  which  are  contained  in  a  putrid  lake,  and 
bring  to  view  their  numerous  and  diversified  inhabitants: 
and  the  next  moment  he  can  penetrate  to  regions  of  the 
universe  immeasurably  distant,  and  contemplate  the  moun¬ 
tains  and  the  vales,  the  rocks  and  the  plains  which  diversify 
the  scenery  of  distant  surrounding  worlds.  He  can  extract 
an  invisible  substance  from  a  piece  of  coal,  by  which  he  can 
produce,  almost  in  a  moment,  the  most  splendid  illumination 
throughout  every  part  of  a  large  and  populous  city, — he  can 
detach  the  element  of  tire  from  the  invisible  air,  and  cause 
the  hardest  stones,  and  the  heaviest  metals  to  melt  like  wax 
under  its  powerful  agency;  and  he  can  direct  the  lightnings 
of  heaven  to  accomplish  his  purposes,  in  splitting  immense 
stones  into  a  multitude  of  fragments.  He  can  cause  a 
splendid  city,  adorned  with  lofty  columns,  palaces  and  tem¬ 
ples,  to  arise,  in  a  spot  where  nothing  was  formerly  beheld 
but  a  vast  desert  or  a  putrid  marsh  ;  and  can  make  “  the  wil¬ 
derness  and  the  solitary  place  to  be  glad,  and  the  desert  to 
bud  and  blossom  as  the  rose.”  He  can  communicate  his 


38 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


thoughts  and  sentiments  in  a  few  hours,  to  ten  hundred 
thousands  of  his  fellow  men;  in  a  few  weeks,  to  the  whole 
civilized  world;  and,  after  his  decease,  he  can  diffuse  im¬ 
portant  instructions  among  mankind,  throughout  succeeding 
generations. — In  short,  he  can  look  back,  and  trace  the  most 
memorable  events  which  have  happened  in  the  world  since 
time  began,  he  can  survey  the  present  aspect  of  the  moral 
world  among  all  nations; — he  can  penetrate  beyond  the  lim¬ 
its  of  all  that  is  visible  in  the  immense  canopy  of  heaven, 
and  range  amidst  the  infinity  of  unknown  systems  and 
worlds  dispersed  throughout  the  boundless  regions  of  Crea¬ 
tion,  and  he  can  overleap  the  bounds  of  time,  and  expatiate 
amidst  future  scenes  of  beauty  and  sublimity,  which  “eye 
hath  not  seen,”  throughout  the  countless  ages  of  eternity. 

What  an  immense  multitude  of  ideas,  in  relation  to  such 
subjects,  must  the  mind  of  such  a  person  as  Lord  Bacon 
have  contained !  whose  mental  eye  surveyed  the  whole  cir¬ 
cle  of  human  science,  and  who  pointed  out  the  path  by 
which  every  branch  of  knowledge  maybe  carried  towards 
perfection!  How  sublime  and  diversified  must  have  been 
the  range  of  thought  pursued  by  the  immortal  Newton! 
whose  capacious  intellect  seemed  to  grasp  the  vast  system  of 
universal  Nature,  who  weighed  the  ponderous  masses  of  the 
planetary  globes,  and  unfolded  the  laws  by  which  their  di¬ 
versified  phenomena  are  produced,  and  their  motions  di 
rected ! 

“He  while  on  this  dim  spot,  where  mortals  toil, 

Clouded  in  dust, — from  Motion’s  simple  laws 
Could  trace  the  secret  hand  of  Providence, 

Wide-working  through  this  universal  frame. 

— All  intellectual  eye,  _our  solar  round 
First  gazing  through,  he,  by  the  blendid  power 
Of  Gravitation  and  Projection,  saw 
The  whole  in  silent  harmony  revolve. 

— Then  breaking  hence,  he  took  his  ardent  flight 
Through  the  blue  infinite,  and  every  star 
Which  the  clear  concave  of  a  winter’s  night 
Pours  on  the  eye,  or  astronomic  tube, — 

- at  his  approach 

Blazed  into  suns,  the  living  centre  each 
Of  an  harmonious  system.” - 

Such  minds  as  those  of  Socrates,  Plato,  Archimedes,  Locke, 
Boyle,  La  Place,  and  similar  illustrious  characters,  likewise 
demonstrate  the  vast  capacity  of  the  human  intellect,  the 
extensive  range  of  thought  it  is  capable  of  prosecuting,  and 
the  immense  number  of  ideas  it  is  capable  of  acquiring. 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


39 


And  every  man,  whose  faculties  are  in  a  sound  state,  is  en¬ 
dowed  with  similar  powers  of  thought,  and  is  capable  of 
being  trained  to  similar  degress  of  intellectual  excellence. 

And  as  man  is  endued  with  capacious  intellectual  powers 
for  the  acquisition  of  knowledge,  so  he  is  furnished  with  a 
noble  faculty  by  which  he  is  enabled  to  retain,  and  to  treasure 
up  in  his  intellect  the  knowledge  he  acquires.  He  is  en¬ 
dowed  with  the  faculty  of  Memory,  by  which  the  mind  re¬ 
tains  the  ideas  of  past  objects  and  perceptions,  accompanied 
with  a  persuasion,  that  the  objects  or  things  remembered 
were  formerly  real  and  present.  Without  this  faculty  we 
could  never  advance  a  single  step  in  the  path  of  mental  im¬ 
provement.  If  the  information  we  originally  dei’ive  through 
the  medium  of  the  senses,  were  to  vanish  the  moment  the 
objects  are  removed  from  our  immediate  perception,  we 
should  be  left  as  devoid  of  knowledge  as  if  we  had  never 
existed.  But,  by  the  power  of  memory,  we  can  treasure 
up,  as  in  a  storehouse,  the  greater  part,  if  not  the  whole  of 
the  ideas,  notions,  reasonings,  and  perceptions  which  we 
formerly  acquired,  and  render  them  subservient  to  our  fu¬ 
ture  progress  in  intellectual  attainments.  And  it  is  probable, 
that  even  a  human  spirit,  in  the  vigorous  exercise  of  the 
faculties  with  which  it  is  now  furnished,  may  go  forward, 
through  an  interminable  duration,  making  continual  acces¬ 
sions  to  its  stores  of  knovyledge,  without  losing  one  leading 
idea,  or  portion  of  information  which  it  had  previously  ac¬ 
quired. 

The  power  of  memory  in  retaining  past  impressions,  ana 
its  susceptibility  of  improvement,  are  vastly  greater  than  is 
generally  imagined.  In  many  individuals,  both  in  ancient 
and  in  modern  times,  it  has  been  found  in  such  a  state  of 
perfection,  as  to  excite  astonishment,  and  almost  to  trans¬ 
cend  belief.  It  is  reported  of  Seneca,  that  he  could  repeat 
two  thousand  verses  at  once,  in  their  order,  and  then  begin 
at  the  end  and  rehearse  them  backwards,  without  missing  a 
single  syllable.  Cyrus  is  said  to  have  been  able  to  call 
every  individual  of  his  numerous  army  by  his  own  name. 
Cyneas,  who  was  sent  by  Pyrrhus  to  the  Senate  at  Rome, 
on  an  expedition,  the  very  next  day  after  his  arrival,  both 
knew  and  also  saluted  by  their  names,  all  the  Senate,  and 
the  whole  order  of  the  gentlemen  in  Rome.  Mithridates 
who  governed  twenty-three  nations,  all  of  different  langua¬ 
ges,  could  converse  with  every  one  of  them  in  their  own 


40 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


language.*  An  ancient  author  mentions  one  Oritus,  a  Cor¬ 
sican  boy,  to  whom  he  dictated  a  great  number  of  words  botli 
sense  and  nonsense,  and  finding  he  could  rehearse  a  consid¬ 
erable  number  without  missing  one,  and  in  the  same  order 
in  which  he  dictated  them,  increased  them  to  the  number  of 
forty  thousand,  and  found,  to  his  astonishment,  that  he  could 
repeat  them  all  from  beginning  to  end,  or  from  the  end 
backwards  to  the  beginning,  in  the  order  in  which  they 
were  dictated. 

In  modern  times,  there  have  likewise  been  many  instan¬ 
ces  of  extraordinary  powers  of  retention.  Dr.Wallis,  in  a 
Paper  in  the  Philosophical  Transactions,  informs  us  that  he 
extracted  the  cube  root  of  the  number  three,  even  to  thirty 
places  of  decimals,  by  the  help  of  his  memory  alone.  Mag- 
lia  Bethi,  an  Italian,  had  read  all  the  books  that  were  pub¬ 
lished  in  his  life  time,  and  most  of  those  which  were  publish¬ 
ed  before,  and  could  not  only  give  an  account  of  what  was 
contained  in  each  author,  but  could  likewise,  from  memory, 
quote  the  chapter,  section,  and  page  of  any  book  he  had 
read,  and  repeat  the  author’s  own  words,  in  reference  to  any 
particular  topic.  A  gentleman,  in  order  to  try  his  memory, 
lent  him  a  long  manuscript  he  was  about  to  publish,  and  af¬ 
ter  it  had  been  returned,  called  upon  him  soon  afterwards, 
pretending  he  had  lost  it,  and  desired  him  to  write  as  much 
of  it  as  he  could  remember :  when,  to  his  surprise,  he  wrote  it 
over  accurately  word  for  word,  the  same  as  in  the  manuscript 
he  had  lent  him.  M.  Euler,  a  late  celebrated  mathematician 
and  philosopher,  who  died  in  1783,  having  lost  his  sight  by  too 
intense  application  to  study,  afterwards  composed  his  “Ele¬ 
ments  of  Algebra,”  and  a  work  “On  the  inequalities  of  the 
planetary  motions,,”  that  required  immense  and  complicat¬ 
ed  calculations,  which  he  performed  by  his  memory  alone, 
to  the  admiration  and  astonishment  even  of  the  philosophic 
world.  His  memory  seemed  to  retain,  every  idea  that  was 
conveyed  to  it,  either  from  reading  dfTrom  meditation,  and 
his  powers  of  reasoning  and  of  discrimination  were  equally 
acute  and  capacious.  lie  was  also  an  excellent  classical 
scholar,  and  could  repeat  the  vEneid  6r  Virgil  from  the  be¬ 
ginning  to  the  end,  and  indicate  the  first  and  last  line  of 
every  page  of  the  edition  he  used.f  I  have  conversed  with 
an  individual,  who  was  born  blind,  and  who  could  repeat 

*  Senec.  Con  trovers.  Lib.  1.  Pliny’s  Nat.  Hist.  &c. 

+  Encyclopedia  Britain.  Art.  Euler. 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE, 


41 


the  whole  of  the  Old  and  the  New  Testaments  from  be¬ 
ginning  to  end;  and  not  only  so,  but  could  repeat  any  par¬ 
ticular  chapter  or  verse  that  might  be  proposed  to  him,  the 
moment  after  it  was  specified. 

Thus  it  appears  that  man  is  not  only  possessed  of  an  ar¬ 
dent  desire  after  knowledge,  but  is  endued  with  the  most 
penetrating  and  capacious  powers  of  intellect,  both  for  ac¬ 
quiring  and  for  treasuring  it  up  in  his  mind — powers  which 
appear  susceptible  of  indefinite  improvement  in  this  world  ; 
and  the  legitimate  inference  that  may  be  drawn  from  this,  is, 
that  they  will  continue  to  be  exerted  with  uninterrupted  ac¬ 
tivity,  throughout  an  unceasing  duration.  And,  is  it  pos¬ 
sible  to  suppose,  in  consistency  with  the  moral  attributes  of 
the  Deity,  that  the  exercise  of  such  powers  is  intended  to  be 
confined  within  the  narrow  limits  of  time,  and  to  the  con¬ 
tracted  sphere  of  the  terraqueous  globe  ? 

- - - “  Say,  can  a  soul  possess’d 

Of  such  extensive,  deep,  tremendous  powers, 

Enlarging  still,  be  but  a  finer  breath 
Of  spirits  dancing  through  their  tubes  awhile, 

And  then  forever  lost  in  vacant  air?” 

Such  a  conclusion  never  can  be  admitted  while  we  recognise 
the  Divinity  as  possessed  of  boundless  goodness  and  unerr¬ 
ing  wisdom.  It  is  the  province  of  Goodness  to  gratify  those 
pure  and  ardent  desires  which  it  has  implanted  in  the  soul; 
and  it  is  the  part  of  Wisdom  to  proportionate  means  to  ends. 
But  if  the  whole  existence  of  human  beings  had- been  intend¬ 
ed  to  be  confined  to  a  mere  point  in  duration,  is  it  rational 
to  suppose,  that  Infinite  Wisdom  would  have  endowed  the 
human  soul  with  powers  and  capacities  so  marvellous  and 
sublime,  and  made  so  many  great  preparations  and  arrange¬ 
ments  for  promoting  its  physical  and  moral  perfections? 
To  acquiesce  in  such  a  supposition,  would  be  to  degrade 
the  Divine  wisdom  and  intelligence  below  the  level  of  the 
wisdom  of  man,  and  to  impute  imperfection  and  folly  to  Him 
who  is  “  the  only  Wise  God.”  For,  in  the  conduct  of  hu¬ 
man  beings,  we  uniformly  regard  it  as  an  evidence  of  folly, 
when  they  construct  a  complicated  and  an  extravagant  ma¬ 
chine,  which  either  accomplishes  no  end,  or  no  end  worthy 
of  the  expense  and  labour  bestowed  on  its  construction. 
And,  therefore,  if  we  would  not  ascribe  imbecility  or  want 
of  design  to  the  adorable  Creator  of  the  universe,  we  must 
admit,  that  he  has  not  formed  the  soul  of  man  for  this  ter- 

4* 


42 


TIIE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


restrial  scene  alone ,  but  has  destined  it  to  a  state  of  progres¬ 
sive  improvement,  and  of  endless  duration. 

This  conclusion  will  appear  still  more  evident,  if  we  consi¬ 
der,  the  endless  round  of  business  and  care,  and  the  numerous 
hardships  to  which  the  bulk  of  mankind  are  subjected  in 
the  present  state,  which  prevent  the  full  and  vigorous  exer¬ 
cise  of  the  intellectual  powers  on  those  objects  which  are 
congenial  to  the  ardent  desires,  and  the  noble  faculties  of 
the  human  soul.  The  greater  part  of  mankind,  in  the  pres¬ 
ent  circumstances  of  their  terrestrial  existence,  have  their 
time  and  attention  almost  wholly  absorbed  in  counteracting 
the  evils  incident  to  their  present  condition,  and  in  making 
provision  for  the  wants  of  their  animal  natures  ;  and,  conse¬ 
quently,  the  full  gratification  of  the  appetite  for  knowledge, 
is  an  absolute  impossibility,  amidst  the  pursuits  and  the  tur¬ 
moils  connected  with  the  present  scene  of  things. — If  we  like¬ 
wise  consider  the  difficulty  of  directing  the  mind  in  the  pur¬ 
suit  of  substantial  knowledge,  and  the  numerous  obstructions 
which  occur  in  our  researches  after  truth,  amidst  the  contra¬ 
dictory  opinions,  the  jarring  interests,  and  the  wayward  pas¬ 
sions  of  men, — if  we  consider  the  imperfections  of  our  sen¬ 
ses,  and  the  fallacies  to  which  they  are  exposed — the  preju¬ 
dices  and  the  passions  which  seduce  us  into  error — how  readi¬ 
ly  we  embrace  a  glittering  phantom  for  a  substantial  truth — - 
and  how  soon  our  spirits  faint  under  the  pressure  of  intense 
application  to  mental  pursuits, — we  shall  be  convinced,  that, 
in  this  sublunary  sphere,  there  is  no  scope  for  the  full  exer¬ 
cise  of  the  intellectual  powers,  and  that  the  present  world 
must  be  only  a  preparatory  scene  to  a  higher  state  of  exis¬ 
tence. — Besides,  even  in  those  cases  where  every  requisite 
for  the  acquisition  of  knowledge  is  possessed — where  leisure, 
wealth,  education,  books,  instruments,  and  all  the  assistances 
derived  from  learned  associations,  are  conjoined  with  the 
most  splendid  intellectual  endowments,  how  feeble  are  the 
efforts  of  the  most  penetrating  and  energetic  mind,  and  how 
narrow  the  boundary  within  which  its  views  are  confined! 
The  brightest  genius,  standing  on  the  highest  eminence  to 
which  science  can  transport  him,  contemplates  a  boundless 
prospect  of  objects  and  events,  the  knowledge  of  which  be 
can  never  hope  to  attain,  while  he  is  chained  down  to  the 
limits  of  this  terrestrial  ball.  Ilis  mental  eye  beholds  an 
unbounded  and  diversified  scene  of  objects,  operations, 
relations,  changes,  and  revolutions,  beyond  the  limits  of 
all  that  is  visible  to  the  eye.  of  sense  :  he  catches  an  occasional 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


43 


glimpse  of  objects  anil  of  scenes  which  were  previously 
involved  in  obscurity,  he  strains  his  mental  sight,  stretches 
forward  with  eagerness  to  grasp  at  new  discoveries,  descries 
some  openings  which  direct  his  view  into  the  regions  of  infi¬ 
nity  and  eternity — is  still  restless  and  unsatisfied — perceives 
all  his  knowledge  to  be  mere  shreds  and  patches,  or  like  a 
few  dim  tapers  amidst  the  surrounding  gloom — is  convinced 
that  his  present  faculties  are  too  weak  and  limited,  and  that 
he  must  be  raised  to  a  sublimer  station,  before  he  can  fully 
grasp  the  magnificent  objects  which  lie  hid  in  the  unex¬ 
plored  regions  of  immensity.  All  his  present  views  and 
prospects  are  confined  within  a  circle  of  a  few  miles,  and 
all  beyond,  in  the  universal  system,  which  extends  through 
the  immeasurable  tracts  of  infinite  space,  is  darkness  and 
uncertainty. 

Can  it,  then,  be  supposed,  that  a  soul  furnished  with  such 
noble  powers  and  capacities,  capable  of  traversing  the 
realm  of  creation,  of  opening  new  prospects  into  the  unbound¬ 
ed  regions  of  truth  that  lie  before  it,  and  of  appreciating  the 
perfections  of  the  Sovereign  of  the  universe — a  soul  fired 
with  ardent  desires  after  knowledge,  panting  after  new 
discoveries  of  truth  and  of  the  grandeur  of  the  Divinity, 
unsatisfied  with  all  its  past  attainments,  and  contemplating 
a  boundless  unexplored  prospect  before  it — should  be  cast 
oft' from  existence,  and  sink  into  eternal  annihilation,  at  the 
moment  when  its  capacities  were  just  beginning  to  expand, 
when  its  desires  were  most  ardent,  and  when  the  scenes  of 
immensity  and  eternity  were  just  opening  to  its  view?  If 
such  a  supposition  could  be  admitted,  man  would  be  the 
most  inexplicable  phenomenon  in  the  universe;  his  existence 
an  unfathomable  mystery;  and  there  could  be  no  conceivable 
mode  of  reconciling  his  condition  and  destination  with  the 
wisdom,  the  rectitude,  and  the  benevolence  of  his  Creator.* 

*  Such  considerations,  as  those  which  I  have  now  adduced,  seem 
to  have  made  a  powerful  impression  upon  the  minds  of  the  philosophers 
of  antiquity.  “  When  I  consider,”  says  Cicero,  “  the  wonderful 
activity  of  the  mind,  so  great  a  memory  of  what  is  past,  and  such  a 
capacity  of  penetrating  into  the  future;  when  l  behold  such  a  number 
of  arts  and  sciences,  and  such  a  multitude  of  discoveries  thence  aris¬ 
ing;  I  believe,  and  am  firmly  persuaded  that  a  nature  which  contains 
so  many  things  within  itself  cannot  be  mortal.”  Cicero  de  Seneclute. 
Cap.  21.  And  if  this  argument  appeared  strong  even  in  Cicero’s  time, 
it  has  received  a  vast  accession  of  strength  from  the  numerous  arts, 
sciences,  inventions,  and  discoveries  which  are  peculiar  to  the  age  in 
which  we  live. 


44 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


SECTION  IV. 

On  the 'perpetual  progress  of  the  mind  towar  ds  perfection 

As  a  supplement  to  the  preceding-  argument,  it  may  be 
stated,  that  the  soul  of  man  appears  to  he  capable  of  making 
a  perpetual  progress  towards  intellectual  and  moral  perfec¬ 
tion,  and  of  enjoying  felicity  in  every  stage  of  its  career, 
without  the  possibility  of  ever  arriving  at  a  boundary  to  its 
excursions.  In  the  present  state  we  perceive  no  limits  to 
the  excursions  of  the  intellect,  but  those  which  arise  from 
its  connexion  with  an  unwieldy  corporeal  frame,  which  is 
chained  down,  as  it  were,  to  a  mere  point,  in  the  immensity 
of  creation.  Up  to  the  latest  period  of  its  connexion  with 
time,  it  is  capable  of  acquiring  new  accessions  of  know¬ 
ledge,  higher  attainments  in  virtue,  and  more  ardent  desires 
after  moral  perfection;  and  the  infinity  of  the  Creator,  and 
the  immensity  of  that  universe  over  which  he  presides,  pre¬ 
sent  a  field  in  which  it  may  forever  expatiate,  and  an  assem¬ 
blage  of  objects  on  which  its  powers  may  be  incessantly 
exercised,  without  the  most  distant  prospect  of  ever  arriv¬ 
ing  at  a  boundary  to  interrupt  its  intellectual  career. 

As  I  cannot  illustrate  this  topic  in  more  beautiful  and 
forcible  language  than  has  beer,  already  done  by  a  celebrated 
Essayist,  I  shall  take  the  liberty  of  quoting  his  words. — 
“How'can  it  enter  into  the  thoughts  of  man,”  says  this  ele¬ 
gant  writer,  “  that  the  soul,  which  is  capable  of  such  im¬ 
mense  perfections,  and  of  receiving  new  improvements  to 
all  eternity,  shall  fall  away  into  nothing  almost  as  soon  as 
it  is  created?  Are  such  abilities  made  for  no  purpose?  A 
brute  arrives  at  a  point  of  perfection  which  he  can  never 
pass.  In  a  few  years  he  has  all  the  endowments  he  is  capa¬ 
ble  of;  and  were  he  to  live  ten  thousand  more,  would  be  the 
same  thing  he  is  at  present.  Were  a  human  soul  thus  at  a 
stand  in  her  accomplishments,  were  her  faculties  to  be  full 
blown,  and  incapable  of  further  enlargements,  I  could  ima¬ 
gine  it  might  fall  away  insensibly,  and  drop  at  once  into  a 
state  of  annihilation.  But  can  we  believe  a  thinking  being, 
that  is  in  a  perpetual  progress  of  improvements,  and  travel¬ 
ling  on  from  perfection  to  perfection,  after  having  just  looked 
abroad  into  the  works  of  the  Creator,  and  made  a  few  dis¬ 
coveries  of  his  infinite  goodness,  wisdom,  and  power,  must 
perish  in  her  first  setting  out,  and  in  the  very  beginning  of 
her  inquiries? 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


45 


“A  man,  considered  in  his  present  state,  seems  only  sent 
into  the  world  to  propagate  his  kind.  He  provides  himself 
with  a  successor,  and  immediately  quits  his  post  to  make 
room  for  him: — 

Heir  urges  on  his  predecessor  heir 

Like  wave  impelling  wave. 

He  does  not  seem  born  to  enjoy  life,  but  to  deliver  it  down 
to  others.  This  is  not  surprising  to  consider  in  animals, 
which  are  formed  for  our  use,  and  can  finish  their  business 
in  a  short  life.  The  silk  worm,  after  having  spun  her  task, 
lays  her  eggs  and  dies.  But  a  man  can  never  have  taken  in 
his  full  measure  of  knowledge,  has  not  time  to  subdue  his 
passions,  establish  his  soul  in  virtue,  and  come  up  to  the  per¬ 
fection  of  his  nature,  before  he  is  hurried  oft’  the  stage. 
Would  an  infinitely  wise  Being  make  such  glorious  creatures 
for  so  mean  a  purpose?  Can  he  delight  in  the  production 
of  such  abortive  intelligences,  such  short-lived  reasonable 
beings?  Would  he  give  us  talents  that  are  not  to  be  exert¬ 
ed?  capacities  that  are  never  to  be  gratified?  How  can  we 
find  that  Wisdom,  which  shines  through  all  his  works  in  the 
formation  of  man,  without  looking  on  this  world  as  a  nur¬ 
sery  for  the  next?  and  believing  that  the  several  genera¬ 
tions  of  rational  creatures,  which  rise  up  and  disappear  in 
such  quick  successions,  are  only  to  receive  their  first  rudi¬ 
ments  of  existence  here,  and  afterwards  to  be  transplanted 
into  a  more  friendly  climate,  where  they  may  spread  and 
flourish  to  all  eternity. 

“There  is  not,  in  my  opinion,  a  more  pleasing  and  trium¬ 
phant  consideration  in  religion  than  this,  of  the  perpetual 
progress  which  the  soul  makes  towards  the  perfection  of  its 
nature,  without  ever  arriving  at  a  period  in  it.  To  look 
upon  the  soul  as  going  on  from  strength  to  strength  ;  to  con¬ 
sider  that  she  is  to  shine  for  ever  with  new  accessions  of 
glory,  and  brighten  ta  all  eternity,  that  she  will  be  still  add¬ 
ing  virtue  to  virtue,  and  knowledge  to  knowledge,  carries  in 
it  something  wonderfully  agreeable  to  that  ambition  which  is 
natural  to  the  mind  of  man.  Nay,  it  must  be  a  prospect 
pleasing  to  God  himself  to  see  his  creation  forever  beautify¬ 
ing  in  his  eyes,  and  drawing  nearer  to  him  by  greater  de¬ 
grees  of  resemblance. 

“  Methinks  this  single  consideration  of  the  progress  of  a 
finite  spirit  to  perfection  will  be  sufficient  to  extinguish  all 
envy  in  inferior  natures,  and  all  contempt  in  superior.  That 


46 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OP  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


cheruDim,  which  now  appears  as  a  god  to  a  human  soul, 
knows  very  well  that  the  period  will  come  about  in  eternity, 
when  the  human  soul  shall  be  as  perfect  as  he  himself  now 
is;  nay,  when  she  shall  look  down  upon  that  degree  of  per¬ 
fection  as  much  as  she  now  falls  short  of  it.  It  is  true  the 
higher  nature  still  advances,  and  by  that  means  preserves 
his  distance  and  superiority  in  the  scale  of  being;  but  he 
knows  how  high  soever  the  station  is,  of  which  he  stands 
possessed  at  present,  the  inferior  nature  will  at  length  mount 
up  to  it,  and  shine  forth  in  the  same  degree  of  glory. 

“With  whatastonishmentand  veneration  may  we  look  into 
our  own  souls,  where  their  are  such  hidden  stores  of  virtue 
and  knowledge,  such  inexhausted  sources  of  perfection? 
We  know  not  yet  what  we  shall  be,  nor  will  it  ever  enter 
into  the  heart  of  man  to  conceive  the  glory  that  will  be  al¬ 
ways  in  reserve  for  him.  The  soul  considered  with  its 
Creator,  is  like  one  of  those  mathematical  lines  that  may 
draw  nearer  to  another  for  all  eternity  without  a  possibility 
of  touching  it:  and  can  there  be  a  thought  so  transporting, 
as  to  consider  ourselves  in  these  perpetual  approaches  to 
Him  who  is  not  only  the  standard  of  perfection  but  of  hap¬ 
piness?* 


section  v. 


On  the  unlimited  range  of  view  which  is  opened  to  the  hu¬ 
man  faculties  throughout  the  immensity  of  space  and 
of  duration. 


The  unlimited  range  of  view  which  is  opened  to  the  human 
imagination  throughout  the  immensity  of  space  and  of  dura¬ 
tion,  and  the  knowledge  we  are  capable  of  acquiring  respect¬ 
ing  the  distant  regions  of  the  universe,  are  strong  presump¬ 
tions  and  evidences  of  the  eternal  destination  of  man. 

If  the  universe  consisted  solely  of  the  globe  on  w  hich  we 
dwell,  with  its  appendages,  and  were  the  spaces  with  which 
it  is  surrounded  nothing  more  than  an  immense  void,  it 
would  not  appear  surprising  were  the  existence  of  man  to 
terminate  in  the  tomb.  After  having  traversed  this  earthly 
ball  for  eighty  or  a  hundred  years,  and  surveyed  all  the 
varieties  on  its  surface ;  after  having  experienced  many  of 
the  physical  and  moral  evils  connected  with  its  present 
constitution,  and  felt  that  “  all  is  vanity  and  vexation  of 


*  Spectator,  vol.  2. 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


47 


spirit,”  and  that  no  higher  prospect,  and  no  further  scope 
for  the  exercise  of  his  faculties  were  presented  to  view;  he 
would  be  ready  to  exclaim  with  Job,  “  I  loathe  it,  I  would 
not  live  alway ;  let  me  alone,  for  my  days  are  vanity:  my 
soul  chooseth  strangling  and  death,  rather  than  my  life’” 
To  run  the  same  tiresome  round  of  giddy  pleasures,  and  to 
gaze  perpetually  on  the  same  unvaried  objects,  from  one 
century  to  another,  without  the  hope  of  future  enjoyment, 
would  afford  no  gratification  commensurate  with  the  desires 
and  capacities  of  the  human  mind.  Its  powers  would  lan¬ 
guish,  its  energies  would  be  destroyed,  its  progress  to  per¬ 
fection  would  be  for  ever  interrupted,  and  it  would  roam  in 
vain  amidst  the  surrounding  void  in  quest  of  objects  to  stimu¬ 
late  its  activity. 

But  beyond  the  precincts  of  this  earthly  scene,  “  a  wide 
and  unbounded  prospect  lies  before  us;”  and  the  increasing 
light  of  modern  science  has  enabled  us  to  penetrate  into  its 
distant  regions,  and  to  contemplate  some  of  its  sublime  and 
glorious  objects.  Within  the  limits  of  the  solar  system  of 
which  our  world  forms  a  part,  there  have  been  discovered 
twenty-nine  planetary  bodies,  which  contain  a  mass  of 
matter  more  than  two  thousand  five  hundred  times  greater 
than  the  eaith,  besides  the  numerous  comets,  which  are 
traversing  the  planetary  regions  in  all  directions,  and  the 
immense  globe  of  the  Sun,  which  is  like  a  universe  in  itself, 
and  which  is  five  hundred  times  larger  than  the  earth  and 
all  the  planets  and  comets  taken  together.  These  bodies 
differ  from  each  other  in  their  magnitude,  distances,  and 
motions,  and  in  the  scenery  with  which  their  surfaces  are 
diversified  ;  and  some  of  them  are  encircled  with  objects  the 
most  splendid  and  sublime.  They  appear  to  be  furnished 
with  every  thing  requisite  for  the  accommodation  of  intel¬ 
lectual  beings, — are  capable  of  containing  a  population 
many  thousands  of  times  greater  than  that  of  our  world,  and 
are  doubtless  replenished  with  myriads  of  rational  inhabi¬ 
tants.  Within  the  limits  this  system  the  soul  of  man  would 
find  full  scope  for  the  exertion  of  all  its  powers,  capacities, 
and  activities,  during  a  series  of  ages. 

Our  views  of  the  universe,  however,  are  not  confined  to 
the  system  with  which  we  are  more  immediately  connected. 
Every  star  which  twinkles  in  the  canopy  of  heaven,  is,  on 
good  grounds,  concluded  to  be  a  sun,  and  the  centre  of  a 
magnificent  system  similar  to  our  own ;  and  perhaps  sur¬ 
rounded  with  worlds  more  spacious  and  splendid  than  any 


48 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


of  the  planetary  globes  which  we  are  permitted  to  contem¬ 
plate.  Nearly  a  thousand  of  these  systems  are  visible  tv) 
every  observer,  when  he  directs  his  eye,  in  a  clear  win’er’s 
night,  to  the  vault  of  heaven.  Beyond  all  that  is  visible  to 
the  unassisted  eye,  a  common  telescope  enables  us  to  dis¬ 
cern  several  thousands  more.  With  higher  degrees  of 
magnifying  power,  ten  thousands  more,  which  lie  seattered 
at  immeasurable  distances  beyond  the  former,  may  still  be 
descried.  With  the  best  instruments  which  art  has  hitherto 
constructed,  many  millions  have  been  detected  in  the  differ¬ 
ent  regions  of  the  sky — leaving  us  no  room  to  doubt,  that 
hundreds  of  millions  more,  which  no  human  eye  will  ever 
discern  in  the  present  state,  are  dispersed  throughout  the 
illimitable  tracts  of  creation.  So  that  no  limits  appear  to 
the  scene  of  Creating  Power,  and  to  that  vast  empire  over 
which  the  moral  government  of  the  Almighty  extends. 
Amidst  this  boundless  scene  of  Divine  Wisdom  and  Om¬ 
nipotence,  it  is  evident,  that  the  soul  might  expatiate  in  the 
full  exercise  of  its  energies,  during  ages  numerous  as  the 
drops  of  the  ocean,  without  ever  arriving  at  a  boundary  to 
interrupt  its  excursions. 

Now,  it  ought  to  be  carefully  remarked,  in  the  first  place, 
that  God  endowed  the  mind  of  man  with  those  faculties  by 
which  he  has  been  enabled  to  compute  the  bulk  of  the 
earth,  to  determine  the  size  and  distances  of  the  planets, 
and  to  make  all  the  other  discoveries  to  which  I  now  allude. 
In  the  course  of  his  providence  he  led  the  human  mind  into 
that  train  of  thought,  and  paved  the  way  for  those  inven¬ 
tions  by  means  of  which  the  grandeur  and  extent  of  his 
operations  in  the  distant  regions  of  space  have  been  opened 
to  our  view.  It,  therefore,  appears  to  have  been  his  will 
and  intention ,  that  the  glories  of  his  empire,  in  the  remote 
spaces  of  creation,  should  be,  in  some  measure,  unveiled  to 
the  inhabitants  of  our  world. 

Again,  when  the  soul  has  once  got  a  glimpse  of  the  mag¬ 
nificence  and  immensity  of  creation,  it  feels  the  most  ardent 
desire  to  have  the  veil,  which  now  interposes  between  us 
and  the  remote  regions  of  the  universe,  withdrawn,  and  to 
contemplate  at  a  nearer  distance  the  splendours  of  those 
worlds  whose  suns  we  behold  twinkling  from  afar.  A  thou¬ 
sand  conjectures  and  inquiries  are  suggested  to  the  mind,  in 
relation  to  the  systems  and  worlds  which  are  dispersed 
through  the  immensity  of  space.  Are  all  those  vast  globes 
oeopled  with  inhabitants?  are  they  connected  together, 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGTIT  OF  NATURE. 


49 


under  the  government  of  God.  as  parts  of  one  vast  moral 
system?  are  their  inhabitants  pure  moral  intelligences,  or 
»re  they  exposed  to  the  inroads  of  physical  and  moral  evil? 
What  are  the  gradations  of  rank  or  of  intellect  which  ex- 
iit  among  them?  What  correspondence  do  they  carry  on 
with  other  provinces  of  the  Divine  empire?  What  discove¬ 
ries  have  they  made  of  the  perfections  of  Deity,  of  the 
plan  of  his  government,  and  of  the  extent  of  his  domin¬ 
ions?  With  what  species  of  corporeal  vehicles  do  they  hold 
a  correspondence  with  the  material  world  ?  With  what  or¬ 
gans  of  perception,  and  with  what  powers  of  intellect  are 
they  lurnished?  What  faculties  and  organs  different  from 
those  of  man  do  they  possess,  and  by  what  laws  are  their 
social  intercourses  regulated?  Do  benignity  and  love  for 
ever  beam  from  their  countenances,  and  does  ecstatic  joy 
perpetually  enrapture  their  hearts?  What  capacities  for 
rapid  movement  do  they  possess?  Are  they  confined  within 
the  limits  of  a  single  globe  like  ours,  or  can  they  fly  from 
one  world  t.o  another,  on  the  wings  of  a  seraph?  What 
magnificent  landscapes  adorn  the  places  of  their  residence? 
What  celestial  glories  are  hung  out  for  their  contemplation 
in  the  canopy  of  heaven?  What  visible  displays  of  the 
presence  and  agency  of  their  Creator  are  presented  to  their 
view  ?  By  what  means  are  they  carried  forward  in  their 
progress  towards  intellectual  and  moral  perfection?  What 
sciences  do  they  cultivate  — What  objects  engage  their  chief 
attention — in  what  solemn  and  sublime  forms  of  worship 
and  adoration  do  they  join  ?  What  changes  or  revolutions 
have  taken  place  among  them?  What  transactions  does 
their  history  record?  What  scenes  of  glory  or  of  terror 
have  been  displayed  towards  any  particular  system  or  pro¬ 
vince  of  this  immense  empire?  Are  sin,  disease,  and  death 
altogether  unknown,  and  do  their  inhabitants  bask  for  ever 
in  the  regions  of  immortality?  What  knowledge  do  they 
possess  of  the  character  and  condition  of  the  inhabitants 
of  our  globe,  and  of  the  system  of  which  it  forms  a  part? 
What  variety  of  sensitive  and  intellectual  beings  is  to  be 
found  in  the  different  Systems  of  the  universe?  What  di¬ 
versity  of  external  scenery,  superior  to  all  that  the  eye  oi 
man  has  seen  or  his  imagination  can  conceive,  is  displayed 
throughout  the  numerous  worlds  which  compose  this  vast 
empire?  What  systems'  exist,  and  what  scenes  of  creating 
power  are  displayed  in  that  boundless  region  which  lies  be¬ 
yond  the  liihits  of  human  vision?  At  what  period  in  dura- 


50 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


tion  did  this  mighty  fabric  or  Me  universe  first  arise  into 
existence?  What  successive  creations  have  taken  place 
since  the  first  material  world  was  launched  into  existence 
.  by  the  Omnipotent  Creator?  What  new  worlds  and  beings 
are  still  emerging  into  existence  from  the  voids  of  space? 
Is  this  mighty  expanse  of  creation  to  endure  forever, — 
and  to  receive  new  accessions  to  its  population  and  gran¬ 
deur,  while  eternity  rolls  on?  What  are  the  grand  and  ulti¬ 
mate  designs  to  be  accomplished  by  this  immense  assem¬ 
blage  of  material  and  intellectual  beings,  and  is  man  never 
to  behold  this  wondrous  scene  a  little  more  unfolded? 

Inquiries  of  this  description,  to  which  no  satisfactory 
answers  can  be  expected  in  the  present  state,  might  be  mul¬ 
tiplied  to  an  indefinite  extent.  The  soul  of  man  is  aston¬ 
ished,  overwhelmed,  and  bewildered  at  the  immensity  of 
the  scene  which  is  opened  before  it, — and  at  once  perceives, 
that,  in  order  to  acquire  a  comprehensive  knowledge  of  the 
character  and  attributes  of  the  Divinity — to  penetrate  into 
the  depths  of  his  plans  and  operations — and  to  contemplate 
the  full  glory  of  his  empire. — ages  numerous  as  the  stars  of 
heaven  are  requisite,  and  that,  if  no  future  existence  awaits  it 
beyond  the  grave,  its  ardent  desires  after  progressive 
improvement  and  felicity,  and  its  hopes  of  becoming  more 
fully  acquainted  with  the  universe  audits  Author,  must  end 
in  eternal  disappointment. 

Again,  the  mind  of  man  is  not  only  animated  with  ardent 
desires  after  a  more  full  disclosure  of  the  wonders  of  this 
boundless  scene,  but  is  endowed  with  capacities  for  acquir¬ 
ing  an  indefinite  extent  of  knowledge  respecting'  the  distant- 
regions  of  the  universe  and  the  perfections  of  its  Author. 
Those  who  have  taken  the  most  extensive  excursions  through 
the  field  of  science,  still  find,  that  they  are  capable  of  receiv¬ 
ing  an  addition  to  all  the  knowledge  they  have  hitherto  acquir¬ 
ed  on  every  subject,  and  of  prosecuting  inquiries  beyond 
the  range  of  the  visible  system,  provided  the  means  of  inves¬ 
tigation  were  placed  within  their  reach.  Were  a  human 
soul  transported  to  a  distant  world,  for  example,  to  the 
regions  of  the  planet  Saturn, — were  it  permitted  to  contem¬ 
plate  at  leisure  the  sublime  movements  of  its  rings,  and  the 
various  phenomena  of  its  moons;  the  variety  of  landscapes 
which  diversify  its  surface,  and  the  celestial  scenery  which 
its  firmament  displays, — were  it  to  mingle  with  its  inhabi¬ 
tants,  to  learn  the  laws  bv  which  their  social  intercourse  is 
directed  the  sciences  which  they  cultivate,  the  worship  in 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


51 


which  they  engage,  and  the  leading  transactions  and  events 
which  their  history  records— it  would  find  no  more  difficulty 
in  acquiring  and  treasuring  up  such  information,  than  it 
now  does  in  acquiring,  from  the  narrative  of  a  traveller,  a 
knowledge  of  the  customs  and  manners  of  an  unknown  tribe 
of  mankind,  and  of  the  nature  of  the  geographical  territory 
it  possesses.  Were  angelic  messengers  from  a  thousand 
worlds,  to  be  despatched,  at  successive  intervals,  to  our 
globe,  to  describe  the  natural  and  moral  scenery,  and  to 
narrate  the  train  of  Divine  dispensations  peculiar  to  each 
world — there  would  be  ample  room  in  the  human  mind  for 
treasuring  up  such  intelligence,  notwithstanding  all  the  stores 
of  science  which  it  may  have  previously  acquired.  Such 
information  would  neither  annihilate  the  knowledge  we  had 
formerly  attained,  nor  prevent  our  further  progress  in  intel¬ 
lectual  acquisitions.  On  the  contrary,  it  would  enlarge  the 
capacity  of  the  mind,  invigorate  its  faculties,  and  add  a  new 
stimulus  to  its  powers  and  energies.  On  the  basis  of  such 
information,  the  soul  could  trace  new  aspects,  and  new  dis¬ 
plays  of  Divine  wisdom,  intelligence,  and  rectitude,  and  ac¬ 
quire  more  comprehensive  views  of  the  character  of  God — 
just  as  it  does,  in  the  mean  time,  from  a  contemplation  of 
those  objects  and  dispensations  which  lie  within  its  grasp. 
To  such  researches,  investigations,  and  intellectual  progres¬ 
sions,  no  boundary  can  be  assigned,  if  the  soul  be  destined 
to  survive  the  dissolution  of  its  mortal  frame.  It  only  re¬ 
quires  to  be  placed  in  a  situation  where  its  powers  will  be  per¬ 
mitted  to  expatiate  at  large,  and  where  the  physical  and 
moral  obstructions  which  impede  their  exercise  shall  be 
completely  removed. 

It  may  be  farther  remarked,  on  the  ground  of  what  has 
been  now  stated,  that  all  the  knowledge  which  can  be  at¬ 
tained  in  the  present  state,  is  bu  as  a  drop  to  the  ocean, 
when  compared  with  “the  treasures  of  wisdom  and  know¬ 
ledge”  that  may  be  acquired  in  the  eternal  world.  The 
proportion  between  the  one  and  the  other  may  bear  a  cer¬ 
tain  analogy  to  the  bulk  of  the  terraqueous  globe,  when 
compared  with  the  immensity  of  the  worlds  and  systems 
which  compose  the  universe.  If  an  infinite  variety  of  de¬ 
signs,  of  objects,  and  of  scenery,  exist  in  the  distant  pro¬ 
vinces  of  creation,  as  we  have  reason  to  believe,  from  the 
variety  which  abounds  in  our  terrestrial  system, — if  every 
world  be  peopled  with  inhabitants  of  a  different  species 
from  those  of  another,  if  its  physical  constitution  and  ex- 


62 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  01'  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


ernal  scenery  be  peculiar  to  itself,  if  the  dispensations  of 
the  Creator  towards  its  inhabitants  be  such  as  have  not  been 
displayed  to  any  other  world,  if  “the  manifold  wisdom  of 
God,”  in  the  arrangement  of  its  destinies,  be  displayed  in  a 
manner,  in  which  it  has  never  been  displayed  to  any  other 
class  of  intelligences; — and,  in  short,  if  every  province  of 
creation  exhibit  a  peculiar  manifestation  of  the  Deity — we 
may  conclude,  that  all  the  knowledge  of  God,  of  his  works 
and  dispensations,  which  can  be  attained  in  the  present  life, 
is  but  as  the  faint  glimmering  of  a  taper  when  contrasted 
with  the  effulgence  of  the  meridian  sun.  Those  who  have 
made  the  most  extensive  and  profound  investigations  into 
the  wonders  of  nature  are  the  most  deeply  convinced  of 
their  own  ignorance,  and  of  the  boundless  fields  of  know¬ 
ledge  which  remain  unexplored.  Sir  Isaac  Newton  had  em¬ 
ployed  the  greater  part  of  his  life  in  some  of  the  sublimest 
investigations  which  can  engage  the  attention  of  the  human 
mind, — and  yet  he  declared  a  little  before  his  death,  “I  do 
not  know  what  I  may  appear  to  the  world,  but  to  myself  I 
seem  to  have  been  only  like  a  boy  playing  on  the  sea-shore, 
and  diverting  myself  in  nowand  then  finding  a  pebble  or  a 
prettier  shell  than  ordinary,  while  the  great  ocean  of  truth 
lay  all  undiscovered  before  me.”  And  is  it  reasonable  to 
believe,  that  after  a  glimpse  of  the  boundless  treasures  of 
Divine  science  has  flashed  upon  the  mind,  it  is  to  pass  only 
a  few  months  or  years  in  anxious  desire  and  suspense,  and 
then  be  extinguished  for  ever? 

It  may  be  farther  observed,  in  connexion  with  the  pre¬ 
ceding  remarks — that  the  creation  of  such  a  vast  universe 
must  have  been  chiefly  intended  to  display  the  perfections  of 
the  Deity ,  and  to  afford  gratification  and  felicity  to  the  in¬ 
tellectual  beings  he  has  formed.  The  Creator  stands  in  no 
need  of  innumerable  assemblages  of  worlds  and  of  inferior 
ranks  of  intelligences,  in  order  to  secure  or  to  augment  his 
felicity.  Innumerable  ages  before  the  universe  was  created, 
he  existed  alone,  independent  of  every  other  being,  and  in¬ 
finitely  happy  in  the  contemplation  of  his  own  eternal  ex¬ 
cellencies.  No  other  reason,  therefore,  can  be  assigned  for 
the  production  of  the  universe,  but  the  gratification  of  his  ra¬ 
tional  offspring,  and  that  he  might  give  a  display  of  the  in¬ 
finite  glories  of  his  nature  to  innumerable  orders  of  intelli 
gent  creatures.  Ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand  suns, 
distributed  throughout  the  regions  of  immensity,  with  all 
their  splendid  apparatus  of  planets,  comets,  moons,  and 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


53 


rings,  can  afford  no  spectacle  of  novelty  to  expand  and  en¬ 
tertain  the  Eternal  Mind;  since  they  all  existed,  in  their 
prototypes,  in  the  plans  and  conceptions  of  the  Deity,  dur¬ 
ing  the  countless  ages  of  a  past  eternity.  Nor  did  he  pro¬ 
duce  these  works  for  the  improvement  and  information  of 
no  being.  This  amazing  structure  of  the  universe,  then, 
with  all  the  sensitive  and  intellectual  enjoyments  connected 
with  it,  must  have  been  chiefly  designed  for  the  instruction 
and  entertainment  of  subordinate  intelligences,  and  to  serve 
as  a  magnificent  theatre  on  which  the  energies  of  Divine 
power  and  wisdom,  and  the  emanations  of  Divine  benevo¬ 
lence  might  be  illustriously  displayed.  And  can  we  suppose 
that  the  material  universe  will  exist,  while  intelligent  minds, 
for  whose  improvement  it  was  reared,  are  suffered  to  sink 
into  annihilation? 

Again,  it  cannot  be  admitted ,  in  consistency  with  the  at¬ 
tributes  of  God,  that  he  will  finally  disappoint  the  rational 
hopes  and  desires  of  the  human  soul,  which  he  himself  has 
implanted  and  cherished.  If  he  had  no  ultimate  design  of 
gratifying  rational  beings  w'ith  a  more  extensive  display  of 
the  immensity  and  grandeur  of  his  works,  it  is  not  con¬ 
ceivable,  that  he  would  have  permitted  them  to  make  those 
discoveries  they  have  already  brought  to  light  respecting 
the  extent  and  glory  of  his  empire.  Such  discoveries  could 
not  have  been  made  without  his  permission  and  direction, 
or  without  those  faculties  and  means  which  he  himself  had 
imparted.  And,  therefore,  in  permitting  the  inhabitants  of 
our  world  to  take  a  distant  glimpse  of  the  boundless  scene 
of  his  operations,  he  must  have  intended  to  excite  those 
ardent  desires  which  will  be  gratified  in  a  future  world,  and 
to  commence  those  trains  of  thought  which  will  be  prose¬ 
cuted  with  increasing  ardour,  through  efernity,  till  we  shall 
be  able  to  perceive  and  comprehend  the  contrivance  and 
skill,  the  riches  of  Divine  munificence,  the  vast  designs,  and 
the  miracles  of  Power  and  Intelligence  which  are  displayed 
throughout  every  part  of  the  universal  system. — To  sup¬ 
pose  that  the  Creator  would  unfold  a  partial  and  imperfect 
view  of  the  wonders  of  creation,  and  enkindle  a  rational 
longing  and  desire,  merely  for  the  purpose  of  mocking  and 
tantalizing  our  expectations,  would  be  to  represent  the 
moral  character  of  the  Deity  as  below  the  level  of  that  of 
a  depraved  mortal.  It  would  argue  a  species  of  deceit,  of 
envy,  and  of  malignity,  which  is  altogether  repugnant  to 
the  character  of  a  Being  of  infinite  benevolence.  As  his 

5* 


54 


IIE  PHILOSOPHY  OP  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


gooilness  was  the  principal  motive  which  induced  him  to 
bring  us  into  existence,  his  conduct  must  be  infinitely  re¬ 
moved  from  every  thing  that  approaches  to  envy,  malignity, 
or  a  desire  to  mock  or  disappoint  the  rational  hopes  of  his 
creatures.  His  general  character,  as  displayed  in  all  his 
works,  leads  us  to  conclude,  that,  in  so  far  from  tantalizing 
the  rational  beings  he  has  formed,  he  is  both  able  and  willing 
“to  do  to  and  for  them  exceeding  abundantly  above  all 
that  they  can  ask  or  think.”  If  lie  had  intended  merely  to 
confine  our  desires  to  sensitive  enjoyments  and  to  the  pre¬ 
sent  life,  the  habitation  of  man  would  have  required  no  more 
contrivance  nor  decoration  than  what  are  requisite  for  the 
lion’s  den  and  the  retreats  of  the  tiger,  and  no  farther  dis¬ 
play  of  the  grandeur  of  his  empire  would  have  been  un¬ 
folded  to  view. 

Since,  therefore,  it  appears,  that  the  universe  is  replenished 
with  innumerable  systems,  and  is  vast  and  unlimited  in  its 
extent — since  God  endued  the  mind  of  man  with  those 
faculties  by  which  he  has  explored  a  portion  of  its  distant 
regions — since  the  soul  feels  an  ardent  desire  to  obtain  a 
more  full  disclosure  of  its  grandeur  and  magnificence — since 
it  is  endued  with  faculties  capable  of  receiving  an  indefinite 
increase  of  knowledge  on  this  subject- -since  all  the  know¬ 
ledge  it  can  acquire  in  the  present  state,  respecting  the 
operations  and  the  government  of  God,  is  as  nothirtg  when 
compared  with  the  prospects  which  eternity  may  unfold — 
since  the  universe  and  its  material  glories  are  chiefly  intend¬ 
ed  for  the  gratification  of  intelligent  minds — and  since  it  is 
obviously  inconsistent  with  the  moral  character  of  the  Deity, 
to  cherish  desires  and  expectations  which  he  will  finally  frus¬ 
trate  and  disappoint — the  conclusion  appears  to  be  unavoida¬ 
ble,  that  man  is  destined  to  an  immortal  existence.  During 
the  progressof  that  existence,  his  faculties  will  arrive  at  their 
full  expansion,  and  there  will  be  ample  scope  for  their  exercise 
on  myriads  of  objects  and  events  which  are  just  now  veiled 
in  darkness  and  mystery.  He  will  be  enabled  to  penetrate 
more  fully  into  the  plans  and  operations  of  the  Divinity — to 
perceive  new  aspects  of  the  Eternal  Mind,  new  evolutions  of 
infinite  Wisdom  and  Design,  new  displays  of  Omnipotence, 
Goodness,  and  Intelligence — and  to  acquire  a  more  minute 
and  comprehensive  view  of  all  the  attributes  of  the  Deity, 
and  of  the  connexions,  relations,  and  dependencies,  of  that 
vast  physical  and  moral  system  over  which  his  government 
extends. 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


?»5 


SECTION  VI. 

On  the  moral  powers  of  man. 

The  moral  powers  with  which  man  is  endued  form  a 
strong  presumptive  proof  of  his  immortal  destiny. 

Man  is  formed  for  action ,  as  well  as  for  contemplation.  For 
this  purpose  there  are  interwoven  in  his  constitution  powers 
principles,  instincts,  feelings,  and  affections,  which  have  a 
reference  to  his  improvement  in  virtue,  and  which  excite 
him  to  promote  the  happiness  of  others.  These  powers 
and  active  principles,  like  the  intellectual,  are  susceptible 
ef  vast  improvement,  by  attention,  by  exercise,  by  trials 
and  difficulties,  and  by  an  expansion  of  the  intellectual  views. 
Such  are  filial  and  fraternal  affection,  fortitude,  temper¬ 
ance,  justice,  gratitude,  generosity,  love  of  friends  and  coun¬ 
try,  philanthropy,  and  general  benevolence.  Degenerate 
as  our  world  has  always  been,  many  striking  examples  of 
such  virtues  have  been  displayed  both  in  ancient  and  mo¬ 
dern  times,  which  demonstrate  the  vigour,  expansion,  and 
sublimity  of  the  moral  powers  of  man. 

When  we  behold  men  animated  by  noble  sentiments, 
exhibiting  sublime  virtues,  and  performing  illustrious  ac¬ 
tions, — displaying  generosity  and  beneficence  in  seasons  of 
calamity,  and  tranquillity  and  fortitude  in  the  midst  of  diffi¬ 
culties  and  dangers — desiring  riches  only  for  the  sake  of 
distributing  them — estimating  places  of  power  and  honour, 
only  for  the  sake  of  suppressing  vice,  rewarding  virtue,  and 
promoting  the  prosperity  of  their  country— enduring  pover¬ 
ty  and  distress  with  a  noble  heroism — suffering  injuries  and 
affronts  with  patience  and  serenity — stifling  resentment  when 
they  have  it  in  their  power  to  inflict  vengeance - display¬ 

ing  kindness  and  generosity  towards  enemies  and  slander¬ 
ers — vanquishing  irascible  passions  and  licentious  desires 
in  the  midst  of  the  strongest  temptations — submitting  to 
pain  and  disgrace  in  order  to  promote  the  prosperity  of 
friends  and  relatives — and  sacrificing  repose,  honour,  wealth, 
and  even  life  itself,  for  the  good  of  their  country,  or  for 
promoting  the  best  interests  of  the  human  race, — we  per¬ 
ceive  in  such  examples  features  of  the  human  mind  which 
mark  its  dignity  and  grandeur,  and  indicate  its  destination 
to  a  higher  scene  of  action  and  enjoyment. 

Even  in  the  annals  of  the  Pagan  world,  we  find  many  ex¬ 
amples  of  such  illustrious  virtues.  There  we  read  of  Regu- 


56 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OP  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


Ivs  exposing  himself  to  the  most  cruel  torments,  and  to 
death  itself,  rather  than  sutler  his  veracity  to  be  impeached, 
or  his  lideiity  to  his  country  to  be  called  in  question — of 
Phocion,  who  exposed  himself  to  the  fury  of  an  enraged  as¬ 
sembly,  by  inveighing  against  the  vices,  and  endeavouring  to 
promote  the  best  interests  of  his  countrymen,  and  gave  it 
as  his  last  command  to  his  son,  when  he  was  going  to 
execution,  “  that  he  should  forget  how  ill  the  Athenians 
had  treated  his  father” — of  Cyrus ,  who  was  possessed  of 
wisdom,  moderation,  courage,  magnanimity,  and  noble  sen¬ 
timents,  and  who  employed  them  all  to  promote  the  happi¬ 
ness  of  his  people  — of  Scipio,  in  whose  actions  the  virtues 
of  generosity  and  liberality,  goodness,  gentleness,  justice, 
magnanimity,  and  chastity,  shone  with  distinguished  lustre 
and  of  Damon  and  Pythias ,  who  were  knit  together  in  the 
bonds  of  a  friendship  which  all  the  terrors  of  an  ignomini¬ 
ous  death  could  not  dissolve.  But  of  all  the  characters  of 
the  heathen  world,  illustrious  for  virtue,  Aristides  appears 
to  stand  in  the  foremost  rank.  An  extraordinary  greatness 
of  soul,  (says  Rollin  )  made  him  superior  to  every  passion. 
Interest,  pleasure,  ambition,  resentment,  jealousy,  were  ex¬ 
tinguished  in  him  by  the  love  of  virtue  and  his  country. 
The  merit  of  others,  instead  of  offending  him,  became  his 
own  by  the  approbation  he  gave  it.  He  rendered  the  go¬ 
vernment  of  the  Athenians  amiable  to  their  allies,  by  his  mild¬ 
ness,  goodness,  humanity,  and  justice.  The  disinterested¬ 
ness  he  showed  in  the  management  of  the  public  treasure, 

-  and  the  love  of  poverty  which  he  carried  almost  to  an  ex¬ 
cess,  are  virtues  so  far  superior  to  the  practice  of  our  age, 
that  they  scarce  seem  credible  to  us.  Ilis  conduct  and 
principles  were  always  uniform,  steadfast  in  the  pursuit  of 
whatever  he  thought  just,  and  incapable  of  the  least  false¬ 
hood,  or  shadow  of  flattery,  disguise,  or  fraud,  even  in  jest. 
He  had  such  a  control  over  his  passions,  that  he  uniformly 
sacrificed  his  private  interests,  and  his  private  resentments 
to  the  good  of  the  public.  Thcmistoclcs  was  one  of  the 
principal  actors  who  procured  his  banishment  from  Athens 
but.,  after  being  recalled,  he  assisted  him  on  every  occasion 
with  his  advice  and  credit,  joyfully  taking  pains  to  promote 
the  glory  of  his  greatest  enemy  through  the  motive  of  advan¬ 
cing  the  public  good.  And  when  afterwards  the  disgrace 
of  Themistocles  gave  him  a  proper  opportunity  for  revenge, 
instead  of  resenting  the  ill-treatment  he  had  received  from 
him,  he  constantly  refused  to  join  with  his  enemies,  being  as 


moors  FROM  THE  light  of  nature. 


57 


far  from  secretly  rejoicing  over  the  misfortune  of  his  adversary 
as  he  had  been  before  from  being  afflicted  at  his  good  success. 
Such  virtues  reflect  a  dignity  and  grandeur  on  every  mind 
in  which  they  reside,  which  appear  incompatible  with  the 
idea,  that  it  is  destined  to  retire  for  ever  from  the  scene  of 
action  at  the  hour  of  death. 

But  the  noblest  examples  of  exalted  virtue  are  to  be 
found  among  those  who  have  enlisted  themselves  in  the 
cause  of  Christianity.  The  Apostle  Paul  was  an  illustrious 
example  of  every  thing  that  is  noble,  heroic,  generous,  and 
benevolent  in  hurrian conduct.  Hissoul  was  inspired  with  a 
holy  ardour  in  promoting  the  best  interests  of  mankind. 
To  accomplish  this  object,  he  parted  with  friends  and  rela¬ 
tives,  relinquished  his  native  country,  and  every  thing  that 
was  dear  to  him  either  as  a  Jew  or  as  a  Roman  citizen,  and  ex¬ 
posed  himself  to  persecutions  and  dangers  of  every  descrip¬ 
tion.  During  the  prosecution  of  his  benevolent  career,  he 
was  “in  journeyings  often,  in  perils  of  waters,  in  perils  of 
robbers,  in  perils  by  his  own  countrymen,  in  perils  by  the 
heathen,  in  perils  in  the  city,  in  perils  in  the  wilderness,  in 
perils  in  the  sea,  in  perils  among  false  brethren;  in  weari¬ 
ness  and  painfulness,  in  watchings  often,  in  hunger  and 
thirst,  in  fastings  often,  in  stripes  above  measure,  in  cold 
and  nakedness.”  Yet  none  of  these  things  moved  him,  nor 
did  he  count  his  life  dear  to  him,  provided  he  might  finish 
his  course  with  joy,  and  be  instrumental  in  accomplishing 
the  present  and  eternal  happiness  of  his  fellowmen.  In 
every  period  of  the  Christian  era,  similar  characters  have 
arisen  to  demonstrate  the  power  of  virtue  and  to  bless 
mankind.  Our  own  age  and  country  have  produced  nu¬ 
merous  philanthropic  characters,  who  have  shone  as  lights 
in  the  moral  world,  and  have  acted  as  benefactors  to  the 
human  race.  The  names  of  Alfred,  Penn,  Barnard,  Raikes, 
Neilde,  Clarkson,  Sharpe,  Buxton,  Wilberforce,  Yenning, 
and  many  others,  are  familiar  to  every  one  who  is  in  the 
least  acquainted  with  the  annals  of  benevolence.  The  ex¬ 
ertions  which  some  of  these  individuals  have  made  in  the 
cause  of  liberty,  in  promoting  the  education  of  the  young, 
in  alleviating  the  distresses  of  the  poor,  in  meliorating  the 
condition  of  the  prisoner,  and  in  counteracting  the  abomi¬ 
nable  traffic  in  slaves,  will  be  felt  as  blessings  conferred  on 
mankind  throughout  succeeding  generations,  and  will, 
doubtless,  be  held  in  everlasting  remembrance. 

But  among  all  the  philanthropic  characters  of  the  past 


58 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


or  present  age,  the  labours  of  the  late  Mr.  Howard,  stand 
pre-eminent.  This  illustrious  man,  from  a  principle  of 
pure  benevolence,  devoted  the  greater  part  of  his  life  to 
active  beneficence,  and  to  the  alleviation  of  human  wretch¬ 
edness,  in  every  country  where  he  travelled, — diving  into 
the  depth  of  dungeons,  and  exposing  himself  to  the  infected 
atmospheres  of  hospitals  and  jails,  in  order  to  meliorate 
the  condition  of  the  unfortunate,  and  to  allay  the  sufferings 
of  the  mournful  prisoner.  In  prosecuting  this  labour  of  love, 
he  travelled  three  times  through  France,  four  times  through 
Germany,  five  times  through  Holland,  twice  through  Italy, 
once  through  Spain  and  Portugal,  and  also  through  Den¬ 
mark,  Sweden,  Russia,  Poland,  and  part  of  the  Turkish 
empire,  surveying  the  haunts  of  misery,  and  distributing 
benefits  to  mankind  wherever  he  appeared. 

“From  realm  to  realm  with  cross  or  cresent  crown’d. 

Where’er  mankind  and  misery  are  found, 

O’er  burning  sands,  deep  waves,  or  wilds  of  snow, 

Mild  Howard  journeying  seeks  the  house  of  woe. 

Down  many  a  winding  step  to  dungeons  dank, 

Where  anguish  wails  aloud  and  fetters  clank, 

To  caves  bestrewed  with  many  a  mouldering  bone, 

And  cells  whose  echoes  only  learn  to  groan  ; 

Where  no  kind  bars  a  whispering  friend  disclose, 

No  sun-beam  enters,  and  no  zephyr  blows; 

— He  treads,  inemnlous  of  fame  or  wealth, 

Profuse  of  toil  and  prodigal  of  health; 

Leads  stern-ey’d  Justice  to  the  dark  domains, 

If  not  to  sever,  to  relax  the  chains, 

Gives  to  her  babes  the  self-devoted  wife, 

Toiler  fond  husband  liberty  and  life, 

— Onward  he  moves!  disease  and  death  retire; 

And  murmuring  demons  hate  him  and  admire.”  darwin. 

Such  characters  afford  powerful  demonstrations  of  the 
sublimity  of  virtue,  of  the  activity,  of  the  human  mind,  and 
of  its  capacity  for  contributing  to  the  happiness  of  fellow 
intelligences  to  an  unlimited  extent.  We  have  also,  in  our 
own  times,  a  class  of  men  who  have  parted  from  their 
friends  and  native  land,  and  have  gone  to  the  “uttermost 
ends  of  the  earth,”  to  distant  barbarous  climes,  exposing 
themselves  to  the  frosts  of  Labrador  and  Greenland,  to  the 
scorching  heats  of  Africa,  and  to  the  hostile  attacks  of  sav¬ 
age  tribes,  in  order  to  publish  the  salvation  of  God,  and  to 
promote  the  happiness  of  men  of  all  languages  and  climates. 
Some  of  these  have  felt  their  minds  inspired  with  such  a 
noble  ardour  in  the  cause  of  universal  benevolence,  that 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


59 


nothing  but  insurmountable  physical  obstructions  prevented 
them  from  making  the  tour  of  the  world,  and  imparting 
benefits  to  men  of  all  nations,  kindreds,  and  tongues. 

Can  we  then  imagine,  that  such  active  powers  as  those  to 
which  I  have  now  alluded — powers  which  qualify  their  pos¬ 
sessors  for  diffusing  happiness  to  an  indefinite  extent  among 
surrounding  intelligences — will  be  for  ever  extinguished  by 
the  stroke  of  death?  and  that,  alter  a  few  feeble  efforts 
during  the  present  transitory  scene,  they  will  never  again 
exert  their  energies  through  all  eternity?  This  will  appear 
in  the  highest  degree  improbable,  it  we  consider,  1.  The 
limited  sphere  of  action  to  which  the  generality  of  man¬ 
kind  are  confined  in  the  present  state.  Most  men  are  con¬ 
fined  to  laborious  employments,  and  have  their  attention 
almost  entirely  absorbed  in  providing  for  their  families,  and 
in  anxious  solicitude  for  their  animal  subsistence  and  suc¬ 
cess  in  life,  so  that  they  find  no  scope  for  their  moral  pow¬ 
ers  beyond  the  circle  of  the  family  mansion,  and  of  their 
own  immediate  neighbourhood.  2.  The  period  within 
which  the  most  energetic  powers  can  be  exerted  is  extremely 
limited.  It  is  not  before  man  has  arrived  near  the  meridi¬ 
an  of  life  that  his  moral  powers  begin  to  be  fully  expanded, 
—•-and  it  frequently  happens,  in  the  case  of  ardent  benevo¬ 
lent  characters,  that,  at  the  moment  when  their  philanthro¬ 
pic  schemes  were  matured,  and  they  had  just  commenced 
their  career  of  beneficence,  death  interposes,  and  puts  a 
period  to  all  their  labours  and  designs.  3.  In  the  present 
state  of  the  world,  numerous  physical  obstructions  inter¬ 
pose  to  prevent  the  exertion  of  the  moral  powers,  even  in 
the  most  ardent  philanthropic  minds.  The  want  of  wealth 
and  influence;  the  diseases  and  infirmities  of  an  enfeebled 
corporeal  frame;  the  impediments  thrown  iri  the  way  by 
malice  and  envy,  and  the  political  arrangements  of  states; 
the  difficulty  of  penetrating  into  every  region  of  the  globe 
where  human  beings  reside,  and  many  other  obstructions, 
prevent  the  full  exercise  of  that  moral  energy  which  resides 
in  benevolent  and  heroic  minds,  and  confine  its  operations 
within  a  narrow  span.  But  can  we  ever  suppose,  in  con- 
-  sistency  with  Divine  Wisdom  and  Benevolence,  That  God 
has  implanted  in  the  human  constitution  benevolent  active 
powers,  which  are  never  to  be  fully  expanded,  and  that 
those  godlike  characters  that  have  occasionally  appeared 
on  the  theatre  of  our  world,  are  never  to  re-appear  on  the 
field  of  action,  to  expatiate,  in  the  full  exercise  of  their 


60 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


moral  powers,  in  the  ample  career  of  immortality?  To 
admit  such  a  supposition  would  be  in  effect  to  call  in  ques¬ 
tion  his  Wisdom  and  Intelligence.  It  is  the  part  of  Wisdom 
to  proportionate  v leans  to  ends,  and  to  adapt  the  faculties 
of  any  being  to  the  scene  in  which  it  is  to  operate.  But 
here,  we  behold  a  system  of  powers  which  can  never  be 
brought  into  full  operation  in  the  present  state,  and,  there¬ 
fore,  if  death  is  to  put  a  final  termination  to  the  activity  of 
man,  the  mighty  powers  and  energies  with  which  he  is  en¬ 
dowed  have  been  bestowed  in  vain, — and  we  are  led  to 
conceive  of  the  Divine  Being  as  deficient  in  Wisdom  and 
Intelligence  in  his  government  of  the  intellectual  beings  he 
nas  formed. 

This  will,  perhaps,  appear  still  more  obvious,  if  we  attend 
to  the  following  considerations.  Throuchoutthe  universe  we 
perceive  traces  of  a  system  of  universal  benevolence.  This 
is  distinctly  Derceptible  in  relation  to  our  own  globe,  in  the 
revolution  of  day  and  night ;  in  the  constitution  of  the  atmos¬ 
phere  ;  in  the  beautiful  and  sublime  scenes  presented  to  the 
eye  in  every  country  ;  in  the  agencies  of  light  and  heat,  and 
of  the  electrical  and  galvanic  fluids;  in  the  splendour  of  the 
sun,  and  the  glories  of  the  midnight  sky  ;  in  the  organization 
of  the  body  of  man,  and  the  different  senses  with  which  he 
is  endowed  ;  in  the  general  adaptation  of'the  mineral  and 
vegetable  kingdoms,  and  of  every  element  around  us,  to  the 
wants  of  man  and  other  sensitive  beings;  and  in  the  abundant 
supply  of  food  and  drink  which  is  annually  distributed  to 
every  rank  of  animated  existence.  We  perceive  traces  of 
the  same  benevolent  agency  in  the  arrangements  connected 
with  distant  worlds — in  the  rotation  of  the  planetary  globes 
around  their  axes,  in  the  assemblages  of  rings  and  moons 
with  which  they  are  environed,  and  in  the  diversified  ap¬ 
paratus  by  which  light  and  heat  are  distributed  in  due  pro¬ 
portion  to  the  several  bodies  which  compose  the  solar 
system.  And,  in  other  systems,  in  the  distant  regions  of 
space,  we  perceive,  that  its  is  one  great  end  of  the  Creator, 
to  diffuse  light  and  splendour  throughout  all  the  provinces 
of  his  immense  empire,  in  order  to  unveil  his  glorious  works 
to  the  eyes  of  unnumbered  intelligences.  But,  although  a 
system  of  benevolence  is  abundantly  manifest  in  the  me¬ 
chanical  fabric  of  the  universe,  yet  it  does  not  appear  that 
happiness  can  be  fully  enjoyed  without  the  benevolent  agency 
of  intelligent  beings.  We  have  abundant  proofs  of  this 
position  in  the  world  in  which  we  dwell.  For  although 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


61 


the  goodness  of  the  Creator  is  displayed  throughout  all  its 
regions,  yet  the  greater  part  of  the  human  race  is  in  a  state 
of  comparative  misery,  not  owing  to  any  deticiency  in  the 
Divine  bounty,  but  to  the  selfishness,  ambition,  and  malevo¬ 
lence  of  men.  With  the  blessings  which  Heaven  provides 
from  year  to  year,  the  whole  population  of  our  globe,  and  a 
thousand  millions  more,  would  be  amply  supplied,  and  hap¬ 
piness  extensively  diffused,  were  benevolence  a  prominent 
and  universal  trait  in  the  character  of  mankind.  Even  in 
th  ose  places  where  only  a  few  energetic  and  benevolent 
individuals  bestir  themselves  in  the  cause  of  general  philan¬ 
thropy,  a  wonderful  change  is  rapidly  produced  in  the  con¬ 
dition  of  society.  Disease,  and  misery,  and  want,  fly  away 
at  their  approach, — the  poor  are  supplied,  the  wretched  re¬ 
lieved,  the  prisoner  released,  the  orphan  provided  for,  and 
the  widow’s  heart  made  to  sing  for  joy. 

Now,  we  have  every  reason  to  conclude,  that  moral  action 
extends  over  the  whole  empire  of  God — that  Benevolence 
exerts  its  noblest  energies  among  the  inhabitants  of  distant 
worlds —  and  that  it  is  chiefly  through  the  medium  of  reci¬ 
procal  kindness  and  affection  that  ecstatic  joy  prevades  the 
hearts  of  celestial  intelligences.  For  we  cannot  conceive 
happiness  to  exist  in  any  region  of  space,  or  among  any 
class  of  intellectual  beings,  where  love  to  the  Creator,  and 
to  one  another,  is  not  a  prominent  and  permanent  affection. 

It  is,  therefore,  reasonable  to  believe,  that  those  virtuous 
benevolent  characters  which  have  appeared  in  our  world, 
have  been  only  in  the  act  of  training  for  a  short  period,  pre¬ 
paratory  to  their  being  transported  to  a  nobler  scene  of  action 
and  that  their  moral  powers,  which  could  not  be  brought 
into  full  exercise  in  this  terrestrial  sphere,  Avere  intended  to 
qualify  them  for  mingling  with  more  exalted  intelligences, 
and  co-operating  with  them  in  carrying  forward  that  vast 
system  of  universal  benevolence,  to  which  all  the  arrange¬ 
ments  of  the  Creator  evidently  tend. 

Whether  then,  it  may  be  asked,  does  it  appear  most  con 
sislent  with  the  moral  powers  of  man,  and  with  the  wisdom 
and  goodness  of  God,  to  suppose  that  such  illustrious  char¬ 
acters  as  Penn,  G.  Sharp,  Clarkson,  Venning,  Howard,  am; 
the  apostle  Paul,  are  now  for  ever  banished  from  creation, 
or  that  they  are  expatiating  in  a  higher  scene  of  action  and 
enjoyment,  Avhere  all  their  benevolent  energies  find  ample 
scope,  and  where  every  blossom  of  virtue  is  fully  expanded? 
If  there  is  a  God,  and  if  Wisdom,  Benevolence,  and  Recti- 

6 


62 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


tude,  form  an  essential  part  of  his  character,  we  cannot 
doubt  for  a  moment  that  such  characters  are  still  in  existence, 
and  shall  re-appear  on  a  more  splendid  theatre  of  action  in 
the  future  scenes  of  eternity. 

I  shall  conclude  my  illustrations  of  the  preceding  argu¬ 
ments  with  the  following  extract  from  a  judicious  and  ele¬ 
gant  writer: — 

“In  tracing  the  nature  aud  destination  of  any  being,  we 
form  the  surest  judgment  from  his  powers  of  action ,  and 
the  scope  and  limits  of  these  compared  with  his  state  or 
that  field  in  which  they  are  exercised.  If  this  being  passes 
through  different  states  or  fields  of  action,  and  we  find  a 
succession  of  powers  adapted  to  the  different  periods  of  his 
progress,  we  conclude,  that  he  was  destined  for  those  suc¬ 
cessive  states,  and  reckon  his  nature  progressive.  If,  besides 
the  immediate  set  of  powers  which  fit  him  for  action  in  his 
present  state,  we  observe  another  set  which  appear  super¬ 
fluous  if  he  were  to  be  confined  to  it,  and  which  point  to 
another  or  higher  one,  we  naturally  conclude  that  he  is  not 
designed  to  remain  in  his  present  state,  but  to  advance  to 
that  for  which  those  supernumerary  powers  are  adapted. — 
Thus,  we  argue,  that  the  insect.,  which  has  wings  forming 
or  formed,  and  all  the  apparatus  proper  for  flight,  is  not 
destined  always  to  creep  on  the  ground,  or  to  continue  in 
the  torpid  state  of  adhering  to  a  wall,  but  is  designed  in  its 
season  to  take  its  flight  in  air.  Without  this  farther  des¬ 
tination,  the  admirable  mechanism  of  wings  and  the  other 
apparatus,  would  be  useless  and  absurd. 

“The  same  kind  of  reasoning  may  be  applied  to  man, 
while  he  lives 'only  a  sort  of  vegetative  life  in  the  womb. 
He  is  furnished  even  there  with  a  beautiful  apparatus  of 
organs,  eyes,  ears,  and  other  delicate  senses,  which  derive 
nourishment  indeed,  but  are  in  a  manner  folded  up,  and 
have  no  proper  exercise  or  use  in  their  present  confinement. 
Let  us  suppose  some  intelligent  spectator  who  never  had 
any  connexion  with  man,  nor  the  least  acquaintance  with 
human  affairs,  to  see  this  odd  phenomenon,  a  creature  formed 
after  such  a  manner,  and  placed  in  a  situation  apparently 
unsuitable  to  such  various  mac! finery,  must  he  not  be  strange¬ 
ly  puzzled  about  the  use  of  his  complicated  structure,  and 
reckon  such  a  profusion  of  art  and  admirable  workmanship 
lost  on  the  subject:  or  reason  by  way  of  anticipation,  that 
a  creature  endued  with  such  various  yet  unexcrted  capaci- 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


63 


ties,  was  destined  for  a  more  enlarged  sphere  of  action,  m 
which  those  latent  capacities  shall  have  full  play  ?  The  vast 
variety  and  yet  beautiful  symmetry  and  proportions  of  the 
several  parts  and  organs  with  which  the  creature  is  endued, 
and  their  apt  cohesion  with  and  dependance  on  the  curious 
receptacle  of  their  life  and  nourishment,  would  forbid  his 
concluding  the  whole  to  be  the  birth  of  chance,  or  the  bung¬ 
ling  effort  of  an  unskilful  artist;  at  least,  would  make  him 
demur  a  while  at  so  harsh  a  sentence.  But  if,  while  he  is 
in  this  state  of  uncertainty,  we  suppose  him  to  see  the  babe, 
after  a  few  successful  struggles,  throwing  off  his  fetters, 
breaking  loose  from  his  little  dark  prison,  and  emerging  into 
open  day,  then  unfolding  his  recluse  and  dormant  powers, 
breathing  in  air,  gazing  at  light,  admiring  colours,  sounds, 
and  all  the  fair  variety  of  nature;  immediately  his  doubts 
clear  up,  the  propriety  and  excellence  of  the  workmanship 
dawn  upon  him  with  full  lustre,  and  the  whole  mystery  of 
the  first  period  is  unravelled  by  the  opening  of  this  new 
scene.  Though  in  this  second  period  the  creature  lives 
chiefly  a  kind  of  animal  life,  that  is,  of  sense  and  appetite, 
yet  by  various  trials  and  observations  he  gains  experience, 
and  by  the  gradual  evolution  of  the  powers  of  the  imagina¬ 
tion  he  ripens  apace  for  an  higher  life,  for  exercising  the 
arts  of  design  and  imitation,  and  of  those  in  which  strength 
or  dexterity  are  more  requisite,  than  acuteness  or  reach  of 
judgment.  In  the  succeeding  rational  or  intellectual  period. 
Ilia  understanding,  which  formerly  crept  in  a  lower,  mounts 
into  an  higher  sphere,  canvasses  the  natures,  judges  of  the 
relations  of  things,  forms  schemes,  deduces  consequences 
from  what  is  past,  and  from  present  as  well  as  past  collects 
future  events.  By  this  succession  of  states,  and  of  corres¬ 
pondent  culture,  he  grows  up  at  length  into  a  moral,  a 
social,  and  a  political  creature.  This  is  the  last  period  at 
which  we  perceive  him  to  arrive  in  this  his  mortal  career. 
Each  period  is  introductory  to  the  next  succeeding  one  ;  each 
life  is  a  field  of  exercise  and  improvement  for  the  next  higher 
one ;  the  life  of  the  foetus  for  that  of  the  infant,  the  life  of 
the  infant  for  that  of  the  child,  and  all  the  lower  for  the 
highest  and  best. 

“But  is  this  the  last  period  of  nature’s  progression?  Is 
this  the  utmost  extent  of  her  plot,  where  she  winds  up  the 
drama,  and  dismisses  the  actor  into  eternal  oblivion?  Or 
does  he  appear  to  be  invested  with  supernumerary  powers, 
which  have  not  full  exercise  and  scope  even  in  the  last 


64  THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STAT". 

scene,  and  reach  not  that  maturity  of  perfection  of  which 
they  are  capable,  and  therefore  point  to  some  higher  scene, 
where  he  is  to  sustain  another  and  more  important  charac¬ 
ter,  than  he  has  yet  sustained?  If  any  such  there  are,  may 
we  not  conclude  from  analogy,  or  in  the  same  way  of  an¬ 
ticipation  as  before,  that  he  is  destined  for  that  after  part, 
and  is  to  be  produced  upon  a  more  august  and  solemn  stage, 
where  his  sublimer  powers  shall  have  proportioned  action, 
and  his  nature  attain  its  completion.”* 

In  illustrating  the  preceding  arguments,  I  have  shown  that 
man  is  possessed  of  desires  which  cannot  be  fully  gratified, 
and  of  moral  and  intellectual  powers  which  cannot  be  fully 
exercised  in  the  present  world,-  and  consequently,  we  have 
the  same  reason  to  conclude,  that  he  is  destined  to  a  higher 
scene  of  existence,  as  we  would  have,  from  beholding  the 
rudiments  of  eyes  and  ears  in  the  embryo  in  the  womb  that 
it  is  destined  to  burst  its  confinement,  and  to  enter  into  a 
world,  where  sounds,  and  light,  and  colours  will  afford  am¬ 
ple  scope  for  the  exercise  of  these  organs. 


SECTION  VII. 

On  the  apprehensions  and  forebodings  of  the  mind,  when 
under  the  influence  of  remorse. 

The  apprehensions  of  the  mind,  and  its  fearful  forebod¬ 
ings  of  futurity,  when  under  the  influence  of  remorse,  may 
be  considered  as  intimations  of  a  state  of  retribution  in 
another  world. 

As  the  boundless  desires  of  the  human  mind,  the  vast  com¬ 
prehension  of  its  intellectual  faculties,  and  the  virtuous  ex¬ 
ercise  of  its  moral  powers,  are  indications  of  a  future  state 
of  more  enlarged  enjoyment,  so  those  horrors  of  conscience 
which  frequently  torment  the  minds  of  the  wicked,  may  be 
considered  as  the  forebodings  of  future  misery  and  wo. 
For  it  appears  as  reasonable  to  believe,  that  atrocious  deeds 
will  meet  with  deserved  opprobium  and  punishment  in  a 
future  state,  as  that  virtuous  actions  will  be  approved  of 
and  rewarded;  and,  consequently,  we  find,  that  all  nations 
who  have  believed  in  a  future  state  of  happiness  for  the  righte¬ 
ous,  have  also  admitted  that  there  are  future  punishments  in  re¬ 
serve  for  the  workers  of  iniquity.  Every  man  hasinterwoven 
in  his  constitution  amoral  sense  which  secretly  condemnshim 


* 


Fordyce. 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


65 


when  he  has  committed  an  atrocious  action,  even  when  the 
perpetration  of  the  crime  is  unknown  to  his  fellow-men,  and 
when  he  is  placed  in  circumstances  which  raise  him  above 
the  fear  of  human  punishment.  There  have  been  nume¬ 
rous  individuals,  both  in  the  higher  and  the  lower  ranks  of 
life,  who,  without  any  external  cause,  or  apprehension  Oj. 
punishment  from  men,  have  been  seized  with  inward  terrors, 
and  have  writhed  under  the  agonies  of  an  accusing  con¬ 
science,  which  neither  the  charms  of  music,  nor  all  the 
other  delights  of  the  sons  of  men  had  the  least  power  to 
assuage.  Of  the  truth  of  this  position,  the  annals  of  histo¬ 
ry  furnish  us  with  many  impressive  examples.  The  follow¬ 
ing  may  suffice  as  specimens: — 

Whiie  Belshazzar  was  carousing  at  an  impious  banquet 
with  his  wives  and  concubines  and  a  thousand  of  his  nobles, 
the  appearance  of  the  fingers  of  a  man’s  hand,  and  of  the 
writing  on  an  opposite  wall,  threw  him  into  such  consterna¬ 
tion,  that  his  thoughts  terrified  him,  the  girdles  of  his  loins 
were  loosed,  and  his  knees  smote  one  against  another.  His 
terror  in  such  circumstances,  cannot  be  supposed  to  have 
proceeded  from  a  fear  of  man;  for  he  was- surrounded  by 
his  guards  and  his  princes,  and  all  the  delights  of  music, 
and  of  a  splendid  entertainment.  Nor  did  it  arise  from  the 
sentence  of  condemnation  written  on  the  wall:  for  he  was 
then  ignorant  both  of  the  writing  and  of  its  meaning.  But 
he  was  conscious  of  the  wickedness  of  which  he  had  been 
guilty,  and  of  the  sacrilegious  impiety  in  which  he  was 
then  indulging,  and,  therefore,  the  extraordinary  appear¬ 
ance  on  the  wall  was  considered  as  an  awful  foreboding  of 
punishment  from  that  Almighty  and  Invisible  Being  whom 
he  had  offended. — Tiberius,  one  of  the  Roman  emperors, 
was  a  gloomy,  treacherous,  and  cruel  tyrant.  The  lives  of 
his  people  became  the  sport  of  his  savage  disposition. 
Barely  to  take  them  away  was  not  sufficient,  if  their  death 
was  not  tormenting  and  atrocious.  He  ordered,  on  one 
occasion,  a  general  massacre  of  all  who  were  detained  in 
prison,  on  account  of  the  conspiracy  of  Sejanus  his  minis- 
ter,  and  heaps  of  carcases  were  piled  up  in  the  public  pla 
ces.  His  private  vices  and  debaucheries  were  also  in¬ 
cessant,  and  revolting  to  every  principle  of  decency  and 
virtue.  Yet  this  tyrant,  while  acting  in  the  plenitude  of  his 
power,  and  imagining  himself  beyond  the  control  of  every 
law,  had  his  mind  tormented  with  dreadful  apprehensions. 
We  are  informed  by  Tacitus,  that,  in  a  letter  to  the  Senate, 

6* 


66 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


he  opened  the  inward  wounds  of  his  breast,  with  such 
words  of  despair  as  might  have  moved  pity  in  those  who 
were  under  the  continual  fear  of  his  tyranny.*  Neither  the 
splendour  of  his  situation  as  an  emperor,  nor  the  solitary 
retreats  to  which  he  retired  could  shield  him  from  the  ac¬ 
cusations  of  his  conscience,  but  he  himself  was  forced  to 
confess  the  mental  agonies  he  endured  as  a  punishment  for 
his  crimes. — Antiochus  Epiphancs  was  another  tyrant  re¬ 
markable  for  his  cruelty  and  impiety.  He  laid  siege  to  the 
city  of  Jerusalem,  exercised  the  most  horrid  cruelties  upon 
its  inhabitants,  slaughtered  forty  thousand  of  them  in  three 
days,  and  polluted,  in  the  most  impious  manner,  the  temple, 
and  the  worship  of  the  God  of  Israel.  Some  time  after¬ 
wards,  when  he  was  breathing  out  curses  against  the  Jews 
for  having  restored  their  ancient  worship,  and  threatening 
to  destroy  the  whole  nation,  and  to  make  Jerusalem  the 
common  place  of  sepulture  to  all  the  Jews,  he  was  seized 
with  a  grievous  torment  in  his  inward  parts,  and  excessive 
pangs  of  the  cholic,  accompanied  with  such  terrors  as  no 
remedies  could  assuage.  “Worms  crawled  from  every 
part  of  him;  his  flesh  fell  away  piece-meal,  and  the  stench 
was  so  great  that  it  became  intolerable  to  the  whole  army; 
and  he  thus  finished  an  impious  life  by  a  miserable  death. "’f 
During  this  disorder,  says  Polybius,  he  was  troubled  with  a 
perpetual  delirium,  imagining  that  spectres  stood  perpetual¬ 
ly  before  him,  reproaching  him  with  his  crimes. — Similar 
relations  are  given  by  historians,  of  Herod  who  slaughter¬ 
ed  the  infants  at  Bethlehem,  of  Galerius  Maxinlianus  the 
author  of  the  tenth  persecution  against  the  Christians,  of 
the  infamous  Philip  II.  of  Spain,  and  of  many  others 
whose  names  stand  conspicuous  on  the  rolls  of  impiety  and 
crime. 

It  is  related  of  Charles  IX.  of  France,  who  ordered  the 
horrible  Bartholomew  massacre,  and  assisted  in  this  bloody 
tragedy,  that,  ever  after,  he  had  a  fierceness  in  his  looks, 
and  a  colour  in  his  cheeks,  which  he  never  had  before  ; — 
that  he  slept  little,  and  never  sound  ;  and  waked  frequently 
in  great  agonies,  requiring  soft  music  to  compose  him  to 
rest;  and  at  length  died  of  a  lingering  disorder,  after  hav¬ 
ing  undergone  the  most  exquisite  torments  both  of  body  and 
mind.  D’Aubigne  informs  us  that  Henry  IV.  frequently 

*  Tiberium  non  fortuna,non  solitudines  protego’oant,  quin  torrnen- 
ta  pectoris  suasque  poenas  ipse  fateretur,  &c. — Tacitus. 

t  Rollin’s  An.  Hist. 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE.  67 

told,  among  his  most  intimate  friends,  that  eight  days  after 
the  massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew,  he  saw  a  vast  number  of 
ravens  perch  and  croak  on  the  pavilion  of  the  Louvre  ;  that 
the  same  night  Charles  IX.  after  he  had  been  two  hours  in 
bed,  started  up,  roused  his  grooms  of  the  chamber,  and  sent 
them  out  to  listen  to  a  great  noise  of  groans  in  the  air,  and 
among  others,  some  furious  and  threatening  voices,  the 
whole  resembling  what  was  heard  on  the  night  of  the  mas¬ 
sacre  ;  that  all  these  various  cries  were  so  striking,  so  re¬ 
markable,  and  so  articulate,  that  Charles,  believing  that  the 
enemies  of  the  Montmorencies  and  of  their  partizans,  had 
surprised  and  attacked  them,  sent  a  detachment  of  his  guards 
to  prevent  this  new  massacre. — It  is  scarcely  necessary  to 
add,  that  the  intelligence  brought  from  Paris  proved  these 
apprehensions  to  be  groundless,  and  that  the  noises  heard, 
must  have  been  the  fanciful  creations  of  the  guilty  conscience 
of  the  king,  countenanced  by  the  vivid  remembrance  of  those 
around  him  of  the  horrors  of  St.  Bartholomew’s  day. 

King  Richard  III.  after  he  had  murdered  his  innocent 
royal  nephews,  was  so  tormented  in  conscience,  as  Sir  Tho¬ 
mas  Moore  reports  from  the  gentlemen  of  his  bed  chamber, 
that  he  had  no  peace  or  quiet  in  himself,  but  always  carried 
it  as  if  some  eminent  danger  was  near  him.  His  eyes  were 
always  whirling  about  on  this  side,  and  on  that  side ;  he 
wore  a  shirt  of  mail,  and  was  always  laying  his  hand  upon 
his  dagger,  looking  as  furiously  as  if  he  was  ready  to  strike. 
He  had  no  quiet  in  his  mind  by  day,  nor  could  take  any  rest 
by  night,  but,  molested  with  terrifying  dreams,  would  start 
out  of  his  bed,  and  run  like  a  distracted  man  about  the 
chamber.* 

This  state  of  mind,  in  reference  to  another  case,  is  admi¬ 
rably  described,  in  the  following  lines  of  Dryden. 

“  Amidst  your  train  this  unseen  judge  will  wait, 

Examine  how  you  came  by  all  your  state; 

Upbraid  your  impious  pomp,  and  in  your  ear 
Will  hollow,  rebel !  traitor  1  murderer! 

Your  ill-got  power,  wan  looks  and  care  shall  bring. 

Known  but  by  discontent  to  be  a  King. 

Of  crowds  afraid,  yet  anxious  when  alone, 

You’ll  sit  and  brood  your  sorrows  on  a  throne.” 

Bessus  the  Paeonian  being  reproached  with  ill-nature  for 
pulling  down  a  nest  of  young  sparrows  and  killing  them. 


*  Stow’s  Annals,  p.  460. 


68 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


answered,  that  he  had  reason  so  to  do,  “Because  these 
little  birds  never  ceased  falsely  to  accuse  him  of  the  murder 
of  his  father.”  This  parracide  had  been  till  then  concealed 
and  unknown;  but  the  revenging  fury  of  conscience  caused 
it  to  be  discovered  by  himself,  who  was  justly  to  suffer  for 
it. — That  notorious  sceptic  and  semi-atheist  Mr.  Hobbes, 
author  of  the  “Leviathian,”  had  been  the  means  of  poison¬ 
ing  many  young  gentlemen  and  others  with  his  wicked 
principles,  as  the  Earl  of  Rochester  confessed,  with  extreme 
compunction,  on  his  death  bed.  It  was  remarked,  by  those 
who  narrowly  observed  his  conduct,  that  “  though  in  a  hu¬ 
mour  of  bravado,  he  would  speak  strange  and  unbecoming 
things  of  God ;  yet  in  his  study,  in  the  dark,  and  in  his  re¬ 
tired  thoughts,  he  trembled  before  him.”  He  could  not  en¬ 
dure  to  be  left  alone  in  an  empty  house.  He  could  not, 
even  in  His  old  age,  bear  any  discourse  of  death,  and  seemed 
to  cast  off  all  thoughts  of  it.  lie  could  not  bear  to  sleep  in 
the  dark  ;  and  if  his  candle  happened  to  go  out  in  the  night, 
he  would  wake  in  terror  and  amazement, — a  plain  indication, 
that  he  was  unable  to  bear  the  dismal  reflections  of  his  dark 
and  desolate  mind,  and  knew  not  how  to  extinguish  nor  how  to 
bear  the  light  of  “the  candle  of  the  Lord”  within  him.  He 
is  said  to  have  left  the  world,  with  great  reluctance,  under 
terrible  apprehensions  of  a  dark  and  unknown  futurity. , 

“Conscience,  the  torturer  of  the  soul,  unseen, 

Does  fiercely  brandish  a  sharp  scourge  within. 

Severe  decrees  may  keep  our  tongues  in  awe, 

But  to  our  thoughts  what  edict  can  give  law? 

Even  you  yourself  to  your  own  breasts  shall  tell 
Your  crimes,  and  your  own  Conscience  be  your  Hell.” 

Many  similar  examples  of  the  power  of  conscience  in 
awakening  terrible  apprehensions  of  futurity,  could  be 
brought  forward  from  the  records  of  history  both  ancient 
and  modern; — and  there  can  be  no  question,  that,  at  the 
present  moment,  there  are  thousands  of  gay  spirits  immersed 
in  fashionable  dissipation,  and  professing  to  disregard  the 
realities  of  a  future  world,  who,  if  they  would  lay  open  their 
inmost  thoughts,  would  confess,  that  the  secret  dread  of  a 
future  retribution  is  a  spectre  which  frequently  haunts  them 
while  running  the  rounds  of  forbidden  pleasure,  and  em¬ 
bitters  their  most  exquisite  enjoyments. 

Now,  how  are  we  to  account  for  such  terrors  of  con¬ 
science,  and  awful  forebodings  of  futurity,  if  there  be  no 
existence  beyond  the  grave?  especially  when  we  consider, 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


69 


that  many  of  those  who  have  been  thus  tormented  have  occu¬ 
pied  stations  of  rank  and  power,  which  raised  them  above 
the  fear  of  punishment  from  man?  If  they  got  their  schemes 
accomplished,  their  passions  gratified,  and  their  persons 
and  possessions  secured  from  temporal  danger,  why  did  they 
feel  compunction  or  alarm  in  the  prospect  of  futurity?  for 
every  mental  disquietude  of  this  description  implies  a  dread 
of  something  future.  They  had  no  great  reason  to  be  afraid 
even  of  the  Almighty  himself,  if  his  vengeance  do  not  extend 
beyond  the  present  world.  They  beheld  the  physical  and 
moral  world  moving  onward  according  to  certain  fixed  and 
immutable  laws.  They  beheld  no  miracles  of  vengeance — 
no  Almighty  arm  visibly  hurling  the  thunderbolts  of  heaven 
against  the  workers  of  iniquity.  They  saw  that  one  event 
happened  to  all,  to  the  righteous  as  well  as  to  the  wicked, 
and  that  death  was  an  evil  to  which  they  behoved  sooner  or 
later  to  submit.  They  encountered  hostile  armies  with 
fortitude,  and  beheld  all  the  dread  apparatus  of  war  without 
dismay.  Yet,  in  their  secret  retirements,  in  their  fortified 
retreats,  where  no  eye  but  the  eye  of  God  was  upon  them, 
and  when  no  hostile  incursion  was  apprehended,  they  trem¬ 
bled  at  a  shadow,  and  felt  a  thousand  disquietudes  from  the 
reproaches  of  an  inward  monitor  which  they  could  not  es¬ 
cape.  These  things  appear  altogether  inexplicable  if  there 
be  no  retribution  beyond  the  grave. 

We  are,  therefore,  irresistibly  led  to  the  conclusion,  that 
the  voice  of  conscience,  in  such  cases,  is  the  voice  of  God, 
declaring  his  abhorrence  of  wicked  deeds  and  the  punish¬ 
ment,  which  they  deserve,  and  that  his  providence  presides 
over  the  actions  of  moral  agents,  and  gives  intimations  of 
the  future  destiny  of  those  haughty  spirits  who  obstinately 
persist  in  tbeir  trespasses.  And,  consequently,  as  the  peace 
and  serenity  of  virtuous  minds  are  preludes  of  nobler  enjoy¬ 
ments  in  a  future  life,  so  those  terrors  which  now  assail  the 
wicked  may  be  considered  as  the  beginnings  of  that  misery 
and  anguish  which  will  be  consummated  in  the  world  to 
come,  in  the  case  of  those  who  add  final  impenitence  to  all 
their  other  crimes 


r 


70 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  Or  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


SECTION  VIII. 

On  the  disordered  state  of  the  Moral  World,  when  contrast - 
ed  with  the  regular  and  systematical  order  of  the  Material. 

The  disordered  state  of  the  moral  world,  contrasted  with 
the  regular  and  systematical  order  of  the  material,  affords 
a  strong  presumption  of  another  state  in  which  the  moral 
evils  which  now  exist  will  be  corrected. 

When  we  take  a  general  survey  of  the  great  fabric  of  the 
universe,  or  contemplate  more  minutely  any  of  its  subordi¬ 
nate  arrangements,  the  marks  of  beauty,  order,  and  harmony, 
are  strikingly  apparent.  Every  thing  appears  in  its  proper 
place,  moving  onward  in  majestic  order,  and  accomplishing 
the  end  for  which  it  was  intended.  In  the  planetary  system, 
the  law  of  gravitation  is  found  to  operate  exactly  in  propor¬ 
tion  to  the  square  of  the  distance,  and  the  squares  of  the 
periodic  times  of  the  planets’  revolutions  round  the  sun  are 
exactly  proportionate  to  the  cubes  of  their  distances.  Every 
body  in  this  system  finishes  its  respective  revolution  in 
exactly  the  same  period  of  time,  so  as  not  to  deviate  a  single 
minute  in  the  course  of  a  century.  The  annual  revolution 
of  the  planet  Jupiter  was  ascertained  two  centuries  ago,  to 
be  accomplished  in  4330  days,  14  hours,  27  minutes,  and 
1 1  seconds,  and  his  rotation  round  his  axis  in  9  hours,  56 
minutes,  and  these  revolutions  are  still  found  to  be  per¬ 
formed  in  exactly  the  same  times.  The  earth  performs  its 
diurnal  revolution,  from  one  century  to  another,  bringing 
about  the  alternate  succession  of  day  and  night,  in  exactly 
the  same  period  of  23  hours,  56  minutes,  and  4  seconds. 
Throughout  the  whole  of  this  system,  there  is  none  of  the 
bodies  of  which  it  is  composed  that  stops  in  its  motion,  or 
deviates  from  the  path  prescribed.  No  one  interrupts  an¬ 
other  in  its  course,  nor  interferes  to  prevent  the  beneficial 
influences  of  attractive  power,  or  of  light  and  heat.  Were 
it  otherwise — were  the  earth  to  stop  in  its  diurnal  revolution, 
and  delay  to  usher  in  the  dawn  at  its  appointed  time,  o» 
were  the  planets  to  dash  one  against  another,  and  to  run 
lawlessly  through  the  sky,  the  system  of  nature  would  run 
into  confusion,  its  inhabitants  would  be  thrown  into  a  state 
ol  anarchy,  and  deprived  of  all  their  enjoyments.  But,  in 
consequence  of  -the  order  which  now  prevails,  the  whole 
presents  to  the  eye  of  intelligence  an  admirable  display  of 
beauty  and  harmony,  and  of  infinite  wisdom  and  design. 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


71 


In  like  manner,  if  we  attend  to  the  arrangements  of  our  sub¬ 
lunary  system — to  the  revolutions  of  the  seasons,  the  course 
of  the  tides,  the  motions  of  the  rivers,  the  process  of  evapo¬ 
ration,  the  periodical  changes  of  the  winds,  and  the  physical 
economy  of  the  animal  and  vegetable  tribes — the  same  sys¬ 
tematic  order  and  harmony  may  be  perceived. — In  the 
construction  and  movements  of  the  human  frame,  there  is  a 
striking  display  of  systematic  order  and  beauty.  Hundreds 
of  muscles  of  different  forms,  hundreds  of  bones  variously 
articulated,  thousands  of  lacteal  and  lymphatic  vessels,  and 
thousands  of  veins  and  arteries  all  act  in  unison  every  mo  ¬ 
ment,  in  order  to  produce  life  and  enjoyment.  Every  organ 
of  sense  is  admirably  fitted  to  receive  impressions  from  its 
corresponding  objects.  The  eye  is  adapted  to  receive  the 
impression  of  light,  and  light  is  adapted  to  the  peculiar 
construction  of  the  eye  ;  the  ear  is  adapted  to  sound,  and  the 
constitution  of  the  air  and  its  various  undulations  are  fitted 
to  make  an  impression  on  the  tympanum  of  the  ear.  Even 
in  the  construction  of  the  meanest  insect  we  perceive  a  se¬ 
ries  of  adaptations,  and  a  system  of  organization  no  less 
regular  and  admirable  than  those  of  man; — and  as  much 
care  appears  to  be  bestowed  in  bending  a  claw,  articulating 
a  joint,  or  clasping  the  filaments  of  a  feather,  to  answer  its 
intended  purpose,  as  if  it  were  the  only  object  on  which 
the  Creator  was  employed. — And  it  is  worthy  of  remark,  that 
our  views  of  the  harmony  and  order  of  the  material  world 
become  more  admirable  and  satisfactory ,  in  proportion  as 
our  knowledge  of  its  arrangements  is  enlarged  and  extended 
Whether  we  explore,  with  the  telescope,  the  bodies  which 
are  dispersed  through  the  boundless  regions  of  space,  or 
pry,  by  the  help  of  the  microscope,  into  the  minutest  parts 
of  nature,  we  perceive  traces  of  order,  and  of  exquisite 
mechanism  and  design  which  excite  admiration  and  wonder 
in  every  contemplative  mind.  Before  the  invention  of  the 
microscope,  wre  might  naturally  have  concluded,  that  all 
beyond  the  limits  of  natural  vision  was  a  scene  of  confu¬ 
sion,  a  chaotic  mass  of  atoms  without  life,  form,  or  order  . 
but  we  now  clearly  perceive,  that  every  thing  is  regular 
and  systematic,  that  even  the  dust  on  a  butterfly’s  wing, 
every  distinct  particle  of  which  is  invisible  to  the  naked 
eye,  consists  of  regularly  organized  feathers — that  in  the  eye 
of  a  small  insect,  ten  thousand  nicely  polished  globules  are 
beautifully  arranged  on  a  transparent  net  work,  within  the 
compass  of  one-twentieth  of  an  inch — and  that  myriads  of 


72 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


living  beings  exist,  invisible  to  the  unassisted  sight,  with 
bodies  as  curiously  organized,  and  as  nicely  adapted  to 
their  situations  as  the  bodies  of  men  and  of  the  larger  ani¬ 
mals.  So  that  the  whole  frame  of  the  material  world  pre¬ 
sents  a  scene  of  infinite  wisdom  and  intelligence,  and  a  display 
of  systematic  order,  beauty,  and  proportion.  Every  thing 
bears  the  marks  of  benevolent  design,  and  is  calculated  to 
produce  happiness  in  sentient  beings. 

On  the  other  hand,  when  we  take  a  survey  of  the  moral 
world  in  all  the  periods  of  its  history,  we  perceive  through¬ 
out  almost  every  part  of  its  extent,  an  inextricable  maze, 
and  a  scene  of  clashing  and  confusion,  which  are  directly 
opposed  to  the  harmony  and  order  which  pervade  the  mate¬ 
rial  system.  When  we  take  a  retrospective  view  of  the 
moral  state  of  mankind,  during  the  ages  that  are  past,  what 
do  we  behold,  but  a  revolting  scene  of  perfidy,  avarice, 
injustice  and  revenge, — of  wars,  rapine,  devastation  and 
bloodshed;  nation  rising  against  nation,  one  empire  dash¬ 
ing  against  another,  tyrants  exercising  the  most  horrid 
cruelties,  Superstition  and  Idolatry  immolating  millions  of 
victims,  and  a  set  of  desperate  villains  termed  heroes, 
prowling  over  the  world,  turning  fruitful  fields  into  >. 
wilderness,  burning  towns  and  villages,  plundering  palaces 
and  temples,  drenching  the  earth  with  human  gore,  and 
erecting  thrones  on  the  ruins  of  nations?  Here  we  behold 
an  Alexander,  with  his  numerous  armies,  driving  the 
ploughshare  of  destruction  through  surrounding  nations, 
levelling  cities  with  the  dust,  and  massacring  their  inoffen¬ 
sive  inhabitants,  in  order  to  gratify  a  mad  ambition,  and  to 
be  eulogized  as  a  hero, — there  we  behold  a  Xerxes,  fired 
with  pride  and  with  the  lust  of  dominion,  leading  forward 
an  army  of  three  millions  of  infatuated  wretches  to  be 
slaughtered  by  the  victorious  and  indignant  Greeks.  Here 
we  behold  an  Alaric,  with  his  barbarous  hordes,  ravaging 
the  southern  countries  of  Europe,  overturning  the  most 
splendid  monuments  of  art,  pillaging  the  metropolis  of  the 
Roman  Empire,  and  deluging  its  streets  and  houses  with  the 
blood  of  the  slain, — there  we  behold  a  Tamerlane  overrun¬ 
ning  Persia,  India,  and  other  regions  of  Asia,  carrying  slaugh¬ 
ter  and  devastation  in  his  train,  and  displaying  his  sportive 
cruelty  by  pounding  three  or  four  thousand  people  at  a  time 
in  large  mortars,  and  building  their  bodies  w  ith  bricks  and 
mortar  into  a  wall.  On  the  one  hand,  we  behold  six  mil¬ 
lions  of  Crusaders  marching  in  wild  confusion  through  the 


moors  from  the  light  of  nature 


T3 


eastern  parts  of  Europe,  devouring  every  tiling  before  them, 
like  an  army  of  locusts,  breathing  destruction  to  Jews  and 
Infidels,  and  massacring  the  inhabitants  of  Western  Asia 
with  infernal  fury.  On  the  other  hand,  we  behold  the  im¬ 
mense  forces  of  Jenghiz  Kan  ravaging  the  kingdoms  of 
Eastern  Asia,  to  an  extent  of  15  millions*  of  square  miles, 
beheading  100,000  prisoners  at  once,  convulsing  the  world 
with  terror,  and  utterly  exterminating  from  the  earth  four¬ 
teen  millions  of  human  beings.  At  one  period,  we  behold 
the  ambition  and  jealousy  of  Marius  and  Sylla  embroiling 
the  Romans  in  all  the  horrors  of  a  civil  war,  deluging  the 
city  of  Rome  for  five  days  with  the  blood  of  her  citizens, 
transfixing  the  heads  of  her  senators  with  poles,  and  drag¬ 
ging  their  bodies  to  the  Forum  to  be  devoured  by  dogs.  At 
another,  we  behold  a  Nero  trampling  on  the  laws  of  nature 
and  society,  plunging  into  the  most  abominable  debauche¬ 
ries,  practising  cruelties  which  fill  the  mind  with  horror, 
murdering  his  wife  Octavia  and  his  mother  Agrippina,  insult¬ 
ing  Heaven  and  mankind,  by  offering  up  thanksgivings  to 
the  gods  on  the  perpetration  of  these  crimes,  and  setting 
fire  to  Rome,  that  he  might  amuse  himself  with  the  univer¬ 
sal  terror  and  despair  which  that  calamity  inspired.  At  one 
epoch,  we  behold  the  Goths  and  Vandals  rushing,  like  an 
overflowing  torrent,  from  east  t.o  west,  and  from  north  tc 
south,  sweeping  before,  them  every  vestige  of  civilization 
and  art,  butchering  all  within  their  reach  without  distinction 
of  age  or  sex,  and  marking  their  path  with  rapine,  desola¬ 
tion,  and  carnage.  At  another,  we  behold  the  emissaries  of 
the  Romish  See  slaughtering,  without  distinction  or  mercy, 
the  mild  and  pious  Albigenses,  and  transforming  their 
peaceful  abodes  into  a  scene  of  universal  consternation  and 
horror,  while  the  Inquisition  is  torturing  thousands  of  de¬ 
voted  victims,  men  of  piety  and  virtue,  and  committing  their 
bodies  to  the  flames. 

At  one  period  of  the  world,!  almost  the  whole  earth  ap 
peared  to  be  little  else  than  one  great  field  of  battle,  in 
which  the  human  race  seemed  to  be  threatened  with  utter 
extermination.  The  Vandals,  Huns,  Sarmatians,  Alans, 
and  Suevi,  were  ravaging  Gaul,  Spain,  Germany,  and  other 

*  “•The  conquests  of  Jenghiz  Kan,”  says  Millot, “ were  supoosod 
to  extend  above  eighteen  hundred  leagues  from  east  to  west,  and  a 
thousand  from  south  to  north.” — Modern  History^o\.  1. 

t  About  the  fifth,  sixth,  and  seventh  centuries  of  the  Christian  era. 

7 


74 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  o  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


parts  of  the  Roman  empire;  the  Goths  were  plundering 
Rome,  and  laying  waste  the  cities  of  Italy;  the  Saxons  and 
Angles  were  overrunning  Britain  and  overturning  the  go- 
vernmentof  the  Romans.  Thearmiesof  Justinian  and  of  the 
Huns  and  Vandals  were  desolating  Africa,  and  butchering 
mankind  by  millions.  The  whole  forces  of  Scythia  were 
rushing  with  irresistible  impulse  on  the  Roman  empire, 
desolating  the  countries,  and  almost  exterminating  the  in¬ 
habitants  wherever  they  came.  The  Persian  armies  were 
pillaging  Hierapolis,  Aleppo,  and  the  surrounding  cities, 
and  reducing  them  to  ashes;  and  were  laying  waste  all  Asia, 
from  the  Tigris  to  the  Bosphorus.  The  Arabians  under 
Mahomet  and  his  successors  were  extending  their  conquests 
over  Syria,  Palestine,  Persia,  and  India,  on  the  east,  and 
over  Egypt,- Barbary,  Spain,  and  the  islands  of  the  Mediter¬ 
ranean,  on  the  west ;  cutting  in  pieces  with  their  swords  all 
the  enemies  of  Islamism.  In  Europe,  every  kingdom  was 
shattered  to  its  centre;  in  the  Mahommedan  empire  in  Asia, 
the  Caliphs,  Sultans,  and  Emirs  were  waging  continual 
wars; — new  sovereignties  were  daily  rising  and  daily  de 
stroyed;  and  Africa  was  rapidly  depopulating,  and  verging 
towards  desolation  and  barbarism 

Amidst  this  universal  clashing  of  nations,  when  tne  whole 
earth  became  one  theatre  of  bloody  revolutions, — scenes  of 
horror  were  displayed,  over  which  historians  wish  to  draw 
a  veil,  lest  they  should  transmit  an  example  of  inhumanity 
to  succeeding  ages — the  most  fertile  and  populous  provin¬ 
ces  were  converted  into  deserts,  overspread  with  the  scat¬ 
tered  ruins  of  villages  and  cities — every  tiling  was  wasted 
and  destroyed  with  hostile  cruelty — famine  raged  to  such  a 
degree  that  the  living  were  constrained  to  feed  on  the  dead 
bodies  of  their  fellow-citizens — prisoners  were  tortured 
with  the  most  exquisite  cruelty,  and  the  more  illustrious 
they  were,  the  more  barbarously  were  they  insulted — cities 
were  left  without  a  living  inhabitant — public  buildings  which 
resisted  the  violence  of  the  flames  were  levelled  with  the 
ground — every  art  and  science  was  abandoned  —  the  Roman 
empire  was  shattered  to  its  centre  and  its  power  annihilated 
• — avarice,  perfidy,  hatred,  treachery, and  malevolence  reign¬ 
ed  triumphant;  and  virtue,  benevolence,  and  every  moral 
principle  were  trampled  under  foot 

Such  scenes  of  carnage  and  desolation  nave  oeen  display¬ 
ed  to  a  certain  extent,  and  almost  without  intermission,  dur¬ 
ing  the  whole  period  of  this  world’s  history.  For  the  page 


PROOFS  FROlVi  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


75 


of  the  historian,  whether  ancient  or  modern,  presents  to 
our  view  little  more  than  revolting  details  of  ambitious  con¬ 
querors  carrying  ruin  and  devastation  in  their  train,  of  proud 
despots  trampling  on  the  rights  of  mankind,  of  cities  turned 
into  ruinous  heaps,  of  countries  desolated,  of  massacres 
perpetrated  with  infernal  cruelty,  of  nations  dashing  one 
against  another,  of  empires  wasted  and  destroyed,  of  po¬ 
litical  and  religious  dissensions,  and  of  the  general  progress 
of  injustice,  immorality,  and  crime.  Compared  with  the 
details  on  these  subjects,  all  the  other  facts  which  have  oc¬ 
curred  in  the  history  of  mankind  are  considered  by  the  his¬ 
torian  as  mere  interludes  in  the  great  drama  of  the  world, 
and  almost  unworthy  of  being  recorded. 

Were  we  to  take  a  survey  of  the  moral  world  as  it  now 
stands,  a  similar  prospect,  on  the  whole,  would  be  presented 
to  our  view.  Though  the  shades  of  depravity  with  which 
it  is  overspread  are  not  so  thick  and  dark,  nor  its  commotions 
so  numerous  and  violent  as  in  ancient  times,  yet  the  aspect 
of  every  nation  under  heaven  presents  to  our  view,  features 
which  are  directly  opposite  to  every  thing  we  should  expect 
to  contemplate  in  a  world  of  systematic  order,  harmony,  and 
love.  If  we  cast  our  eyes  towards  Asia,  we  shall  find  the 
greater  part  of  five  hundred  millions  of  human  beings  in¬ 
volved  in  political  commotions,  immersed  in  vice,  ignorance 
and  idolatry,  and  groaning  under  the  lash  of  tyrannical 
despots.  In  Persia,  the  cruelty  and  tyranny  of  its  rulers 
have  transformed  many  of  its  most  fertile  provinces  into 
scenes  of  desolation.  In  Turkey,  the  avarice  and  fiend-like 
cruelty  of  the  Grand  Seignior  and  bis  Bashaws  have  drench¬ 
ed  the  shores  of  Greece  with  the  blood  of  thousands,  turned 
Palestine  into  a  wilderness,  and  rendered  Syria,  Armenia, 
and  Kurdistan  scenes  of  injustice  and  rapine.  In  China 
and  Japan  a  spirit  of  pride  and  jealousy  prevents  the  har¬ 
monious  intercourse  of  other  branches  of  the  human  family, 
and  infuses  a  cold-blooded  selfishness  into  the  breasts  of 
their  inhabitants,  and  a  contempt  of  surrounding  nations. 
Throughout  Tartary,  Arabia,  and  Siberia,  numerous  hostile 
tribes  are  incessantly  prowling  among  deserts  and  forests  in 
quest  of  plunder,  so  that  travellers  are  in  continual  danger 
of  being  either  robbed,  or  murdered,  or  dragged  into  cap¬ 
tivity. — If  we  turn  our  eyes  upon  Africa.,  we  behold  hu¬ 
man  nature  sunk  into  a  state  of  the  deepest  degradation — 
the  states  of  Barbary  in  incessant  hostile  commotions,  and 
plundering  neighbouring  nations  both  by  sea  and  land — the 


7G 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FETC'RE  STATE. 


petty  tyrants  of  Dahomy,  Benin,  Ashantee,  Congo,  and 
Angola,  waging  incessant  wars  with  neighbouring  tribes, 
massacring  their  prisoners  in  cold  blood,  and  decorating 
their  palaces  with  their  skulls — while  other  degraded 
hordes,  in  conjunction  with  civilized  nations,  are  carrying 
on  a  traffic  in  man-stealing  and  slavery,  which  has  stained 
the  human  character  with  crimes  at  which  humanity  shud¬ 
ders.— If  we  turn  our  eyes  towards  America,  we  shall  find 
that  war  and  hostile  incursions  are  the  principle  employ¬ 
ments  of  the  native  tribes,  and  that  the  malignity  of  infernal 
demons  is  displayed  in  the  tortures  they  inflict  upon  the 
prisoners  taken  in  battle,  while  anarchy,  intolerance,  and 
political  commotions,  still  agitate  a  great  proportion  of  its 
more  civilized  inhabitants. — If  we  take  a  survey  of  the  East¬ 
ern  Archipelago,  and  of  the  islands  which  are  scattered 
over  the  Pacific  Ocean,  we  shall  behold  immense  groups  of 
human  beings,  instead  of  living  in  harmony  and  affection, 
displaying  the  most  ferocious  dispositions  towards  each 
other,  hurling  stones,  spears,  and  darts  on  every  stranger  who 
attempts  to  land  upon  their  coasts;  offering  up  human  sacrifi¬ 
ces  to  their  infernal  deities,  and  feasting  with  delight  on  the 
flesh  and  the  blood  of  their  enemies. 

If  we  direct  our  attention  towards  Europe,  the  most 
tranquil  and  civilized  portion  of  the  globe, — even  here  we 
shall  behold  numerous  symptoms  of  political  anarchy  and 
moral  disorder.  During  the  last  thirty  years,  almost  every 
nation  in  this  quarter  of  the  world  has  been  qonvulsed  to 
its  centre,  and  become  the  scene  of  hostile  commotions,  oi 
revolutions,  and  of  garments  rolled  in  blood.  We  have  be¬ 
held  France  thrown  from  a  state  of  aristocratical  tyranny 
and  priestly  domination  into  a  state  of  popular  anarchy  and 
confusion — her  ancient  institutions  razed  to  the  ground,  hei 
princes  and  nobles  banished  from  her  territories,  and  her 
most  celebrated  philosophers,  in  company  with  the  vilest 
miscreants,  perishing  under  the  stroke  of  the  guillotine. 
We  have  beheld  a  Buonaparte  riding  in  triumph  through 
the  nations  over  heaps  of  slain,  scattering  “fire-brands, 
arrows,  and  death,”  and  producing  universal  commotion 
wherever  he  appeared;  overturning  governments,  “chang¬ 
ing  times,”  undermining  the  thrones  of  emperors,  and 
setting  up  kings  at  his  pleasure.  We  have  beheld  his  suc¬ 
cessors  again  attempting  to  entwine  the  chains  of  tyranny 
around  the  necks  of  their  subjects,  and  to  hurl  back  the 
moral  world  into  the  darkness  which  overspread  the  nations 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


77 


during  the  reign  of  Papal  superstition.  We  have  beheld 
Poland  torn  in  pieces  by  the  insatiable  fangs  of  Russia, 
Austria,  and  Prussia,  her  fields  drenched  with  blood,  her 
patriots  slaughtered,  and  her  name  blotted  out  from  the  list 
of  nations.  We  have  beheld  Moscow  enveloped  in  flames, 
its  houses,  churches,  and  palaces  tumbled  into  ruins,  the 
blackened  carcases  of  its  inhabitants  blended  with  the  frag¬ 
ments,  and  the  road  to  Smolensko  covered  with  the  shatter¬ 
ed  remains  of  carriages,  muskets,  breast-plates,  helmets,  and 
garments  strewed  in  every  direction,  and  thousands  of  the 
dying  and  the  dead  heaped  one  upon  another  in  horrible 
confusion,  and  swimming  in  blood.  We  have  beheld  the 
demon  of  war  raging  at  Borodino,  Austerlitz,  the  1  yrol, 
Wilna,  Smolensko,  Trafalgar,  Camperdown,  Eglau,  Jena, 
La  Vendee,  Cadiz,  Warsaw,  Freidland,  Talavera,  Sebastian, 
Lutzen,  Leipsic,  and  Waterloo,  demolishing  cities,  desolat¬ 
ing  provinces,  and  blending  the  carcases  of  horses  and  cat¬ 
tle  with  the  mangled  remains  of  millions  of  human  beings. 
We  have  beheld  Spain  and  Portugal  thrown  into  anarchy 
and  commotion,  and  become  the  scenes  of  bloody  revolu¬ 
tions — Turkey  waging  war  with  religion  and  liberty — • 
Greece  overrun  with  blood-thirsty  Mahometans,  and  her 
shores  and  islands  the  theatre  of  the  most  sanguinary  con 
tests. 

And  what  do  we  just  now  behold  when  we  cast  our  eyes 
on  surrounding  nations?  Russia  pushing  forward  her  nu¬ 
merous  armies  into  the  confines  of  Persia  for  the  purpose 
of  depredation  and  slaughter, — the  Grand  Seignior  ruling 
his  subjects  with  a  rod  of  iron,  and  decorating  the  gates  of 
his  palace  with  hundreds  of  the  heads  and  ears  of  his  ene¬ 
mies,*  while  his  Janizaries  are  fomenting  incessant  insurrec¬ 
tions, — the  Greeks  engaged  in  a  contest  for  liberty,  sur¬ 
rounded  with  blood-thirsty  antagonists,  and  slaughtered 
without  mercy, — Portugal  the  scene  of  intestine  broils  and 
revolutions, — Spain  under  the  control  of  a  silly  priest-ridden 
tyrant,  to  gratify  whose  lust  of  absolute  power,  thousands 

*  In  a  communication  from  Odessa,  dated  August  8,  1824,  it  was 
slated,  that  the  five  hundred  heads  and  twelve  hundred  ears  of  the 
Greeks,  sent  by  the  Captain  Pacha  to  Constantinople,  after  the  tak 
ing  of  Ipsara,  were  exposed  on  the  gale  of  the  seraglio,  on  the  20th 
July,  with  the  following  inscription:  “  God  has  blessed  the  arms  of 
the  Mussclmans,  and  the  detestable  rebels  of  Ipsara  are  extirpated 
from  the  face  of  the  world,”  &c.  It  was  added,  •• dll  friendly  pow¬ 
ers  have  congratulated  the  Sublime  Porte  on  this  victory 

7* 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


78 

of  hum nn  beings  have  been  sacrificed,  and  hundreds  of  emi 
nent  patriots  exiled  from  their  native  land, — the  Inquisition 
torturing  its  unhappy  victims, — the  Romish  church  thunder¬ 
ing  its  anathemas  against  all  who  are  opposed  to  its  inte¬ 
rests, — the  various  sectaries  of  Protestants  engaged  in  mutu¬ 
al  recriminations  and  contentions, — and  the  princes  and 
sovereigns  on  the  Continent  almost  all  combined  to  oppose 
the  progress  of  liberty,  and  to  prevent  the  improvement  of 
the  human  mind. 

If  we  come  nearer  home,  and  take  a  view  of  the  every¬ 
day  scenes  which  meet  our  eye,  what  do  we  behold?  A 
mixed  scene  of  bustling  and  confusion,  in  which  vice  and 
malevolence  are  most  conspicuous,  and  most  frequently  tri¬ 
umphant.  When  we  contemplate  the  present  aspect  of  so¬ 
ciety,  and  consider  the  prominent  dispositions  and  princi¬ 
ples  which  actuate  the  majority  of  mankind, —  the  bound¬ 
less  avaricious  desires  which  prevail,  and  the  base  and  de¬ 
ceitful  means  by  which  they  are  frequently  gratified — the 
unnatural  contentions  which  arise  between  husbands  and 
wives,  fathers  and  children,  brothers  and  sisters — the 
jealousies  which  subsist  between  those  of  the  same  profes¬ 
sion  or  employment — the  bitterness  and  malice  with  which 
law-suits  are  commenced  and  prosecuted — the  malevolence 
and  caballing  which  attend  electioneering  contests — the 
brawlings,  fightings,  and  altercations  which  so  frequently 
occur  in  our  streets,  ale-houses,  and  taverns — and  the  thefts, 
robberies,  and  murders,  which  are  daily  committed, — when 
we  contemplate  the  haughtiness  and  oppression  of  the  great 
and  powerful,  and  the  insubordination  of  the  lower  ranks 
of  society — when  we  see  widows  and  orphans  suffering  in¬ 
justice;  the  virtuous  persecuted  and  oppressed  ;  meritori¬ 
ous  characters  pining  in  poverty  and  indigence ;  fools,  profli¬ 
gates,  and  tyrants,  rioting  in  wealth  and  abundance  ;  gene- 
rousactions  unrewarded;  crimes  unpunished  :  and  the  vilest 
of  men  raised  to  stations  of  dignity  and  honour — we  cannot 
but  admit,  that  the  moral  world  presents  a  scene  of  discord 
and  disorder,  which  mar  both  the  sensitive  and  intellectual 
enjoyments  of  mankind. 

Such,  then,  are  the  moral  aspects  of  our  world,  and  the 
disorders  which  have  prevailed  during  every  period  of  its 
history.  They  evidently  present  a  striking  contrast  10  the 
beauty  and  harmony  which  pervade  the  general  constitution 
of  the  material  system — to  the  majestic  movements  of  the 
planetary  orbs,  the  regular  succession  of  day  and  night,  and 


moors  FROM  THE  j.i.ght  of  nature. 


to 


the  vicissitudes  of  the  seasons;  the  changes  of  the  moon; 
the  ebbing  and  flowing  of  the  sea ;  the  admirable  functions 
of  the  human  system :  and  the  harmonious  adaptations  of 
light  and  heat,  air  and  water,  and  the  various  objects  in  the 
mineral  and  vegetable  kingdoms  to  the  wants  and  the  com¬ 
fort  of  animated  beings.  And  can  we,  for  a  moment,  sup¬ 
pose  that  this  scene  of  moral  disorder  and  anarchy  was  the 
ultimate  end  for  which  the  material  system  was  created  ? 
Can  we  suppose  that  the  earth  is  every  moment  impelled  in 
its  annual  and  diurnal  course  by  the  hand  of  Omnipotence 
that  it  presents  new  beauties  every  opening  spring — brings 
forth  the  treasures  of  autumn,  and  displays  so  many  sublime 
and  variegated  landscapes — that  the  sun  diffuses  his  light  over 
all  its  regions,  that  the  moon  cheers  the  shades  of  night, 
and  the  stars  adorn  the  canopy  of  the  sky,  from  one  genera¬ 
tion  to  another — merely  that  a  set  of  robbers  and  despera¬ 
does,  and  the  murderers  of  nations,  might  prowl  over  the 
world  for  the  purpose  of  depredation  and  slaughter,  that 
tyrants  might  gratify  their  mad  ambition,  that  vice  might 
triumph,  that  virtue  might  be  disgraced,  that  the  laws  of 
moral  order  might  be  trampled  under  foot,  and  that  the 
successive  generations  of  mankind  might  mingle  in  this 
bustling  and  discordant  scene  for  a  few  years,  and  then  sink 
for  ever  into  the  shades  of  annihilation?  Yet  such  a  con¬ 
clusion  we  are  obliged  to  admit,  if  there  i3  no  future  state 
in  which  the  present  disorders  of  the  moral  world  will  be 
corrected,  and  the  plan  of  the  Divine  government  more  fully 
developed.  And  if  this  conclusion  be  admitted,  how  shall 
we  be  able  to  perceive  or  to  vindicate  the  wisdom  of  the 
Creator  in  his  moral  administration?  We  account  it  folly 
in  a  human  being  when  he  constructs  a  machine,  either  for 
no  purpose  at  all,  or  for  no  good  purpose,  or  for  the  promo¬ 
tion  of  mischief.  And  now  can  we  avoid  ascribing  the  same 
imperfection  to  the  Deity,  if  the  present  state  of  the  moral 
world  be  the  ultimate  end  of  all  his  physical  arrangements? 
But  his  wisdom  is  most  strikingly  displayed  in  the  adapta¬ 
tions  and  arrangements  which  relate  to  the  material  system, 
— and  a  Being  possessed  of  boundless  intelligence  must 
~  necessarily  be  supposed  to  act  in  consistency  with  himself. 
He  cannot  display  wisdom  in  the  material  system,  and  folly 
in  those  arrangements  which  pertain  to  the  world  of  mind. 
To  suppose  the  contrary  would  be  to  divest  him  of  his 
moral  attributes,  and  even  to  call  in  question  his  very  ex¬ 
istence. 


80 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


We  are  therefore  necessarily  led  to  conclude,  that  the 
present  state  of  the  moral  world  is  only  a  small  part  of  the 
great  plan  of  God’s  moral  government — the  commencement 
of  a  series  of  dispensations  to  be  completed  in  a  future  scene 
of  existence,  in  which  his  wisdom,  as  well  as  all  his  other 
attributes,  will  be  fully  displayed  before  the  eyes  of  his 
intelligent  offspring.  If  this  conclusion  be  admitted,  it  is 
easy  to  conceive,  how  the  moral  disorders  which  now  exist 
may  be  rectified  in  a  future  world,  and  the  intelligent  universe 
restored  to  harmony  and  happiness,  and  how  those  moral 
dispensations  which  now  appear  dark  and  mysterious,  will 
appear  illustrative  of  Divine  Wisdom  and  Intelligence,  when 
contemplated  as  parts  of  one  grand  system,  which  is  to  run 
parallel  in  duration  with  eternity  itself.  But,  if  this  be  re¬ 
jected,  the  moral  world  presents  to  our  view  an  inextricable 
maze,  a  chaos,  a  scene  of  interminable  confusion,  and  no 
prospect  appears  of  its  being  ever  restored  to  harmony  and 
order.  The  conduct  of  the  Deity  appears  shrouded  in 
impenetrable  darkness;  and  there  is  no  resisting  of  the  con¬ 
clusion,  that  imperfection  and  folly  are  the  characteristics 
of  the  Almighty — a  conclusion  from  which  the  mind  shrink* 
back  with  horror,  and  which  can  never  be  admitted  by  any 
rational  being  who  recognises  a  Supreme  Intelligence  pre¬ 
siding  over  the  affairs  of  the  universe. 

SECTION  IX. 

On  the  unequal  distribution  of  Rewards  and  Punishments 
in  the  present  state. 

The  unequal  distribution  of  rewards  and  punishments 
in  the  present  state,  viewed  in  connexion  with  the  justice 
and  other  attributes  of  the  Deity,  forms  another  powerful 
argument  in  support  of  the  doctrine  of  a  future  state. 

It  is  admitted,  to  a  certain  extent,  that  “  virtue  is  its  own 
reward,  and  vice  its  own  punishment.”  The  natural  ten¬ 
dency  of  virtue,  or  an  obedience  to  the  laws  of  God,  is  to 
produce  happiness;  and  were  it  universally  practised,  it 
would  produce  the  greatest  degree  of  happiness  of  which 
human  nature  in  the  present  state  is  susceptible.  In  like 
manner,  the  natural  tendency  of  vice  is  to  produce  misery ; 
and  were  its  prevalence  universal  and  uncontrolled,  the 
world  would  be  transformed  into  a  society  of  demons,  and 
every  specious  of  happiness  banished  from  the  abodes  of 
men.  By  connecting  happiness  with  the.  observance  of 


I’ROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


81 


his  laws,  and  misery  with  the  violation  of  them,  the  Gov¬ 
ernor  of  the  world,  in  the  general  course  of  his  providence, 
gives  a  display  of  the  rectitude  of  his  character,  and  the 
impartiality  of  his  allotments  towards  the  subjects  of  his 

8  But,  although  these  positions  hold  true,  in  the  general 
course  of  human  affairs,  there  are  innumerable  cases  in  which 
the  justice  of  God,  and  the  impartiality  of  his  procedure, 
would  be  liable  to  be  impeached,  if  this  world  were  the 
only  scene  of  rewards  and  punishments.  e  e  o  a 
poor  starving  wretch,  whom  hunger  has  impe  et  o  rea  4 
open  a  house,  in  order  to  satisfy  his  craving  appetite,  or  to 
relieve  the  wants  of  a  helpless  family,  dragged  with  ig¬ 
nominy  to  the  scaffold,  to  suffer  death  for  his  offence.  We 
behold,  at  the  same  time,  the  very  tyrant  by  whose  order 
the  sentence  was  executed,  who  has  plundered  provinces, 
and  murdered  millions  of  human  beings,  who  has  wounded  the 
peace  of  a  thousand  families,  and  produced  universal  con¬ 
sternation  and  despair  wherever  he  appeared— regaling 
himself  in  the  midst  of  his  favourites,  in  perfect  security 
from  human  punishments.  Instead  of  being  loaded  with 
fetters,  and  dragged  to  a  dungeon,  to  await  in  hopeless  agony 
the  punishment  of  his  crimes,  he  dwells  amidst  all  the 
luxuries  and  splendours  of  a  palace;  his  favour  is  courted 
by  surrounding  attendants;  his  praises  are  chanted  by 
orators  and  poets;  the  story  of  his  exploits  is  engraver  in 
brass  and  marble;  and  historians  stand  ready  to  transmit 
his  lame  to  future  generations.  How  does  the  equity  ol 
the  Divine  government  appear,  in  such  cases,  in  permitting 
an  undue  punishment  to  be  inflicted  on  the  least  offender, 
and  in  loading  the  greatest  miscreant  with  unmerited 

Again,  in  almost  every  period  of  the  world,  we  behold  men 
of  piety  and  virtue  who  have  suffered  the  most  unjust  and 
cruel  treatment  from  the  hands  of  haughty  tyrants  and 
blood-thirsty  persecutors.  It  would  require  volumes  to 
describe  the  instruments  of  cruelty  which  have  been  invent¬ 
ed  by  these  fiend-like  monsters,  and  the  excruciating  tor¬ 
ments  which  have  been  endured  by  the  victims,  of  their  ty¬ 
ranny,  while  justice  see  med  to  slumber, and  the  perpetrators 
were  permitted  to  exult  in  their  crimes.  The  Walden ses 
who  lived  retired  from  the  rest  of  the  world,  among  t  ie 
bleak  recesses  of  the  Alps,  were  a  people  distinguished  for 
piety  industry,  and  the  practice  of  every  moral  virtue 


82 


THE  PIIII0S0PHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


Their  incessant  labour  subdued  the  barren  soil,  and  pre¬ 
pared  it  both  for  grain  and  pasture.  In  the  course  of  two 
hundred  and  fifty  years  they  increased  to  the  number  of 
eighteen  thousand,  occupying  thirty  villages,  besides  ham¬ 
lets,  the  workmanship  of  their  own  hands.  Regular  priests 
they  had  none,  nor  any  disputes  about  religion  ;  neither 
had  they  occasion  for  courts  of  justice  ;  for  brotherly  love 
did  not  suffer  them  to  go  to  law.  They  worshipped  God 
according  to  the  dictates  of  their  conscience  and  the  rules 
of  his  word,  practised  the  precepts  of  his  law,  and  enjoyed 
the  sweets  of  mutual  affection  and  love.  Yet  this  peaceable 
and  interesting  people  became  the  victims  of  the  most  cruel 
and  bloody  persecution.  In  the  year  1540,  the  parliament 
of  Provence  condemned  nineteen  of  them  to  be  burned  for 
heresy,  their  trees  to  be  rooted  up,  and  their  houses  to 
be  razed  to  the  ground.  Afterwards  a  violent  persecution 
commenced  against  the  whole  of  this  interesting  people, 
and  an  army  of  banditti  was  sent  to  carry  the  hellish  pur¬ 
pose  into  effect.  The  soldiers  began  with  massacring  the 
old  men,  women,  and  children,  all  having  fled  who  were 
able  to  fly;  and  then  proceeded  to  burn  their  houses,  barns, 
corn,  and  whatever  else  appertained  to  them.  In  the  town  ol 
Cabriere  sixty  men  and  thirty  women,  who  had  surrendered 
upon  promise  of  life,  were  butchered  each  of  them  without 
mercy.  Some  women  who  had  taken  refuge  in  a  church, 
were  dragged  out  and  burnt  alive.  Twenty-two  villages 
were  reduced  to  ashes  ;  and  that  populous  and  flourishing 
district  was  again  turned  into  a  cheerless  desert. — -Yet,  after 
all  these  atrocities  had  been  committed,  the  proud,  pampered 
priests,  at  whose  instigation  this  persecution  was  com 
menced,  were  permitted  to  live  in  splendour,  to  exult  over 
the  victims  of  their  cruelty,  to  revel  in  palaces,  and  to  in¬ 
dulge  in  the  most  shameful  debaucheries. — If  the  present 
be  the  only  state  of  punishments  and  rewards,  how  shall 
we  vindicate  the  rectitude  of  the  Almighty  in  such  dispen¬ 
sations? 

In  the  reign  of  Louis  XIV.  and  by  the  orders  of  that 
despot,  the  Protestants  of  France  were  treated  with  the 
most  wanton  and  diabolical  cruelty.  Their  houses  were 
rifled,  their  wives  and  daughters  ravished  before  their  eyes, 
and  their  bodies  forced  to  endure  all  the  torments  that  in¬ 
genious  malice  could  contrive.  His  dragoons  who  were 
employed  in  this  infamous  expedition,  pulled  them  by  the 
hair  of  their  heads,  plucked  the  nails  of  their  fingers  and 


I>  tool’s  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


83 


toes,  pricked  their  naked  bodies  with  pins,  smoked  them  in 
their  chimneys  with  wisps  of  wet  straw,  threw  them  into  fires 
and  "held  them  till  they  were  almost  burnt,  slung  them  into 
wells  of  water,  dipped  them  into  ponds,  took  hold  of  them 
with  red  hot  pincers,  cut  and  slashed  them  with  knives,  and 
heat  and  tormented  them  to  death  in  a  most  unmerciful  and 
cruel  manner.  Some  were  hanged  on  the  gallows,  and 
others  were  broken  upon  wheels,  and  their  mangled  bodies 
were  either  left  unburied,  or  cast  into  lakes  and  dunghills, 
with  every  mark  of  indignation  ana  contempt.  Mareschal 
Montrevel  acted  a  conspicuous  part  in  these  barbarous  exe¬ 
cutions.  He  burnt  five  hundred  men,  women,  and  children, 
who  were  assembled  together  in  a  mill  to  pray  and  sing 
psalms  ;  he  cut  the  throats  of  four  hundred  of  the  new  con¬ 
verts  at  Montpelier,  and  drowned  their  wives  and  children 
in  the  river,  near  Aignes  Mortes.  Yet  the  haughty  tyrant 
by  whose  orders  these  barbarous  deeds  were  committed, 
along  with  his  mareschals  and  grandees,  who  assisted  in  the 
execution — instead  of  suffering  the  visitations  of  retributive 
justice,  continued,  for  thirty  years  after  this  period,  to  not 
in  all  the  splendours  of  absolute  royalty,  entering  into  so- 
le'mn  treaties,  and  breaking  them  when  he  pleased,  and  ar- 
rogating  to  himself  divine  honours  ;  and  his  historians,  in¬ 
stead  of  branding  his  memory  with  infamy,  have  procured 
for  him  the  appellation  of  Louis  the  Great. 

A  thousand  examples  of  this  description  might  be  col¬ 
lected  from  the  records  even  of  modern  history,  were  it 
necessary  for  the  illustration  of  this  -topic.  The  horrible 
cruelties  which  were  committed  on  the  Piotestant  inhabit¬ 
ants  in  the  Netherlands  by  the  agents  of  Charles  \.  and 
Philip  II.  of  Spain,  where  more  than  a  hundred  thousand 
persons  of  respectable  characters  were  butchered  without 
mercy  by  the  Dukes  of  Alva  and  Parma,  for  their  adherence 
to  the  religion  of  the  Reformers, — the  dreadful  massacres 
which  took  place,'  on  St.  Bartholomew’s  day,  in  Paris  ami 
throughout  every  province  of  France — the  persecutions  oi 
the  Protestants  in  England,  during  the  reign  of  Queen  Mary, 
when  the  fires  of  Smithfield  were  kindled  to  consume  the 
bodies  of  the  most  pious  and  venerable  men — the  Irish  mas¬ 
sacre  in  the  reign  of  Charles  I.  when  more  than  40,000  in¬ 
offensive  individuals  were  slaughtered  without  distinction 
of  age,  sex,  or  condition,  and  with  every  circumstance  of 
ferocious  cruelty — -the  persecutions  endured  by  the  Scottish 
Presbyterians,  when  they  were  driven  from  their  dwellings, 


84 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


and  hunted  like  wild  beasts  by  the  blood-thirsty  Claverhouse 
and  his  savage  dragoons — the  many  thousands  of  worthy 
men  who  have  fallen  victims  to  the  flames,  and  (he  cruel 
tortures  inflicted  by  the  Inquisitors  of  Spain,  while  their 
haughty  persecutors  were  permitted  to  riot  on  the  spoils  of 
nations — the  fiend-like  cruelties  of  the  Mogul  emperors  in 
their  bloody  wars — the  devastations  and  atrocities  commit¬ 
ted  by  the  Persian  despots — the  massacre  of  the  Gardiotes 
by  Ali  Pacha,  and  of  the  inhabitants  of  Scio  by  the  fero¬ 
cious  Turks — are  only  a  few  instances  out  of  many  thou¬ 
sands,  which  the  annals  of  history  record,  of  human  beings 
suffering  the  most  unjust  and  cruel  treatment,  while  their 
tyrannical  persecutors  were  permitted  to  prosecute  their 
diabolical  career  without  suffering  the  punishment  due  to 
their  crimes.  When  the  mind  takes  a  deliberate  review  of 
all  the  revolting  details  connected  with  such  facts,  it  is  na¬ 
turally  led  to  exclaim,  “  Wherefore  do  the  wicked  live,  be¬ 
come  old,  yea  are  mighty  in  power?  Is  there  no  reward 
for  the  righteous  ?  is  there  no  punishment  for  the  workers 
of  iniquity?  is  there  no  God  that  judgeth  in  the  earth?” 
And,  indeed,  were  there  no  retributions  beyond  the  limits  of 
the  present  life,  we  should  be  necessarily  obliged  to  admit 
one  or  other  of  the  following  conclusions ;  either  that  no 
Moral  Governor  of  the  world  exists,  or,  that  justice  and 
judgment  are  not  the  foundation  of  his  throne. 

When  we  take  a  survey  of  the  moral  world  around  us,  as 
it  exists  in  the  present  day,  the  same  conclusion  forces  itself 
upon  the  mind.  When  we  behold,  on  the  one  hand,  the 
virtuous  and  upright  votary  of  religion  struggling  with  pov¬ 
erty  and  misery,  treated  with  scorn  and  contempt,  perse¬ 
cuted  on  account  of  his  integrity  and  piety,  despoiled  of 
his  earthly  enjoyments,  or  condemned  to  an  ignominious 
death;  and  on  the  other,  the  profligate  and  oppressor,  the 
insolent  despiscr  of  God  and  religion,  passing  his  days  in 
affluence  and  luxurious  ease,  prosecuting  with  impunity  his 
unhallowed  courses,  and  robbing  the  widow  and  the  father¬ 
less  of  their  dearest  comforts — .when  we  behold  hypocrisy 
successful  in  all  its  schemes,  and  honesty  and  rectitude 
overlooked  and  neglected — the  destroyers  of  our  species 
loaded  with  wealth  and  honours,  while  the  benefactors  of 
mankind  are  pining  in  obscurity  and  indigence — knaves  and 
fools  exalted  to  posts  of  dignity  and  honour,  and  men  of 
uprightness  and  intelligence  treated  with  scorn,  and  doomed 
to  an  inglorious  obscurity — criminals  of  the  deepest  dye 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


85 


escaping  with  impunity,  and  generous  actions  meeting  with 
a  base  reward — when  we  see  young  men  of  virtue  and  in¬ 
telligence  cut  off  in  early  life,  when  they  were  just  begin¬ 
ning0  to  bless  mankind  with  their  philanthropic  labours,  and 
tyrants  and  oppressors  continuing  the  pests  of  society,  and 
prolonging  their  lives  to  old  age  in  the  midst  of  their  folly 
and  wickedness — human  beings  torn  from  their  friends,  and 
their  native  home,  consigned  to  perpetual  slavery,  and  re¬ 
duced  below  the  level  of  the  beasts,  while  their  oppressors 
set  at  defiance  the  laws  of  God  and  man,  revel  in  luxurious 
abundance,  and  prosper  in  their  crimes  ; — when  we  behold 
one  nation  or  tribe  irradiated  with  intellectual  light,  another 
immersed  in  thick  darkness;  one  enjoying  the  blessings  of 
civilization  and  liberty,  another  groaning  under  the  lash  of 
despotism,  and  doomed  to  slavery  and  bondage, — when  we 
contemplate  such  facts  throughout  every  department  of  the 
moral  world,  can  we  suppose,  for  a  moment,  that  the  Divine 
administration  is  bounded  by  the  visible  scene  of  things 
that  the  real  characters  of  men  shall  never  be  brought  tc 
light,  that  vice  is  to  remain  in  eternal  concealment  and  ini 
punity,  and  that  the  noblest  virtues  are  never  to  receive 
their  just  “recompense  of  reward?'’  To  admit  such  con 
elusions  would  be  in  effect  to  deny  the  wisdom,  goodness, 
and  rectitude  of  the  Ruler  of  the  world,  or  to  suppose  that 
his  all-wise  and  benevolent  designs  may  be  defeated  by  the 
folly  and  wickedness  of  human  beings.  But  such  conclu¬ 
sions  are  so  palpably  and  extravagantly  absurd,  that  the  only 
other  alternative,  the  reality  of  a  future  state  of  existence, 
maybe  pronounced  to  have  the  force  of  Amoral  demonstra¬ 
tion.  So  that,  had  we  no  other  argument  to  produce  in 
support  of  the  doctrine  of  a  future  state  of  retribution,  this 
alone  would  be  sufficient  to  carry  conviction  to  every  mind 
that  recognizes  the  existence  of  a  Supreme  Intelligence,  and 
entertains  just  views  of  the  attributes  which  must  necessarily 
be  displayed  in  his  moral  administration. 

When  this  conclusion  is  once  admitted,  it  removes  the 
perplexities,  and  solves  all  the  difficulties  which  naturally 
arise  in  the  mind,  when  it  contemplates  the  present  disorder¬ 
ed  state  of  the  moral  world,  and  the  apparently  capricious 
manner  in  which  punishments  and  rewards  are  dispensed. 
Realizing  this  important  truth,  we  need  not  be  surprised  at 
the  unequal  distribution  of  the  Divine  favours  among  the 
various  nations  and  tribes  of  mankind;  since  they  are  all 
placed  on  the  first  stage  of  their  existence,  and  eternity  is 

8 


86 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  01  a  FUTURE  STATE. 


rich  in  resources  to  compensate  for  all  the  defects  and  ine¬ 
qualities  o-f  fortune  which  now  exist.  We  need  not  be 
overwhelmed  with  anguish  when  we  behold  the  pious  and 
philanthropic  youth  cut  down  at  the  commencement  of  his 
virtuous  career,  since  those  buds  of  virtue  which  began  to 
unfold  themselves  with  so  much  beauty  in  the  present  life, 
will  be  fully  expanded  and  bring  forth  nobler  fruits  of  righte¬ 
ousness  in  that  life  which  will  never  end.  We  need  not 
wonder  when  we  behold  tyrants  and  profligates  triumphing, 
and  the  excellent  ones  of  the  earth  trampled  under  foot, 
since  the  future  world  will  present  a  scene  of  equitable  ad¬ 
ministration,  in  which  the  sorrows  of  the  upright  will  be 
turned  into  joy,  the  triumphs  of  the  wicked  into  confusion 
and  shame,  and  every  one  rewarded  according  to  his  works. 
We  need  not  harass  our  minds  with  perplexing  doubts,  re¬ 
specting  the  wisdom  and  equity  of  the  dispensations  of 
Providence;  since  the  moral  government  of  God  extends 
beyond  the  limits  of  this  world,  and  all  its  dark  and  intricate 
mazes  will  be  fully  unravelled  in  the  light  of  eternity. 

- “  The  great  eternal  scheme , 

Involving  all,  and  in  a  perfect  whole 
Uniting,  as  the  prospect  wider  spreads, 

To  Reason’s  eye  will  then  clear  up  apace. 

- Then  shall  we  see  the  cause 

Why  unassuming  worth  in  secret  liv’d, 

And  died  neglected ;  why  the  good  man’s  share 
In  life  was  gall  and  bitterness  of  soul; 

Why  the  lone  widow  and  her  orphan’s  pin’d 
In  starving  solitude,  while  Luxury, 

In  palaces,  lay  straining  her  low  thought. 

To  form  unreal  wants;  why  heaven-born  Truth 
And  Moderation  fair,  wore  the  red  marks 
Of  Superstition’s  scourge;  why  licens’d  Pain, 

That  cruel  spoiler,  that  imbosom’d  foe, 

Imbitter’d  all  our  bliss. — Ye  good  distrestl 
Ye  noble  few !  who  here  unbending  stand 
Beneath  life’s  pressure,  yet  bear  up  a  while. 

And  what  your  bounded  view,  which  only  saw 
A  little  part  deemed  evil,  is  no  more; 

The  storms  of  Wintry  time  will  quickly  pass, 

And  one  unbounded  Spring  encircle  all.”  Thomson's  Winter, 

Thus  it  appears,  that,  although  God,  in  the  general  course 
of  his  providence,  has  connected  happiness  with  the  ob¬ 
servance  of  his  laws,  and  misery  with  the  violation  of  them, 
in  order  to  display  the  rectitude  of  his  nature,  and  his  hatred 
of  moral  evil;  yet  he  has,  at  the  same  time,  in  numerous 
instances,  permitted  vice  to  triumph,  and  virtue  to  be  perse- 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


87 


cuted  and  oppressed,  to  convince  us,  that  his  government 
of  human  beings  is  not  bounded  by  the  limits  of  time,  but 
extends  into  the  eternal  world,  where  the  system  of  his 
moral  administration  will  be  completed,  his  wisdom  and 
rectitude  justified,  and  the  mysterious  ways  of  his  Provi¬ 
dence  completely  unravelled. 

This  argument  might  have  been  farther  illustrated  from 
a  consideration  of  those  moral  perceptions  implanted  in  the 
human  constitution,  and  which  may  be  considered  as  having 
the  force  of  moral  laws  proceeding  from  the  Governor  of 
the  universe.  The  difference  between  right  and  wrong, 
virtue  and  vice,  is  founded  upon  the  nature  of  things,  and  is 
perceptible  by  every  intelligent  agent  whose  moral  feelings 
are  not  altogether  "blunted  by  vicious  indulgences.  Were 
a  man  to  affirm  that  there  is  no  difference  between  justice 
and  injustice,  love  and  hatred,  truth  and  falsehood  ;  that  it 
is  equally  the  same  whether  we  be  faithful  to  a  friend  or  be¬ 
tray  him  to  his  enemies,  whether  servants  act  with  fidelity 
to  their  masters  or  rob  them  of  their  property,  whether 
rulers  oppress  their  subjects  or  promote  their  interests,  and 
whether  parents  nourish  their  children  with  tenderness,  or 
smother  them  in  their  cradles — he  would  at  once  be  de¬ 
nounced  as  a  fool  and  a  madman,  and  hissed  out  of  society. 
The  difference  between  such  actions  is  eternal  and  un¬ 
changeable,  and  every  moral  agent  is  endued  with  a  faculty 
which  enables  him  to  perceive  it.  We  can  choose  to  per¬ 
form  the  one  class  of  actions  and  to  refrain  from  the  other; 
we  can  comply  with  the  voice  of  conscience  which  deters 
us  from  the  one  and  excites  us  to  the  other,  orwe  can  resist 
its  dictates,  and  we  can  judge  whether  our  actions  deserve 
reward  or  punishment.  Now  if  God  has  endued  us  with 
such  moral  perceptions  and  capacities,  is  it  reasonable  to 
suppose,  that  it  is  equally  indifferent  to  him  whether  we 
obey  or  disobey  the  laws  he  has  prescribed  ?  Can  we  ever 
suppose,  that  He  who  governs  the  universe  is  an  unconcern¬ 
ed  spectator  of  the  good  or  evil  actions  that  happen  through¬ 
out  his  dominions  ?  or  that  he  has  left  man  to  act,  with  im¬ 
punity,  according  to  his  inclinations,  whether  they  be  right 
or  wrong?  If  such  suppositions  cannot  be  admitted,  it  fol¬ 
lows  that  man  is  accountable  for  his  actions,  and  that  it  must 
be  an  essential  part  of  the  Divine  government  to  bring  every 
action  into  judgment,  and  to  punish  or  reward  his  creatures 
according  to  their  works.  And  if  it  appear,  in  point  of  fact, 
that  such  retributions  are  not  fully  awarded  in  the  present 


88 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


state,  nor  a  visible  distinction  made  between  the  righteous 
and  the  violators  of  his  law,  we  must  necessarily  admit  the 
conclusion,  that  the  full  and  equitable  distribution  of  pun¬ 
ishments  and  rewards  is  reserved  to  a  future  world,  when  a 
visible  and  everlasting  distinction  will  be  made,  and  the 
whole  intelligent  creation  clearly  discern  between  him  that 
served  God  and  him  that  served  him  not. 

section  x. 

On  the  absurdity  of  supposing'  that  the  thinking  principle  in 
man  will  ever  be  annihilated. 

It  is  highly  unreasonable,  if  not  absurd,  to  suppose  that 
the  thinking  principle  in  man  will  ever  be  annihilated 

In  so  far  as  our  knowledge  of  the  universe  extends,  there 
does  not  appear  a  single  instance  of  annihilation  throughout 
the  material  system.  There  is  nc  reason  to  believe,  that, 
throughout  all  the  worlds  which  are  dispersed  through  the 
immensity  of  space,  a  single  atom  has  ever  yet  been,  or  ever 
will  be  annihilated.  From  a  variety  of  observations,  it  ap¬ 
pears  highly  probable,  that  the  work  of  creation  is  still  go¬ 
ing  forward  in  the  distant  regions  of  the  universe,  and  that 
the  Creator  is  replenishing  the  voids  of  space  witbi  new 
worlds  and  new  orders  of  intelligent  Deings ;  and  it  is  rea¬ 
sonable  to  believe,  from  the  incessant  agency  of  Divine 
Omnipotence,  that  new  systems  will  be  continually  emerg¬ 
ing  into  existence  while  eternal  ages  are  rolling  on.  But 
no  instance  has  yet  occurred  of  any  system  or  portion  of 
matter  either  in  heaven  or  earth  having  been  reduced  to 
annihilation.  Changes  are  indeed  incessantly  taking  place, 
in  countless  variety,  throughout  every  department  of  nature. 
The  spots  of  the  sun,  the  belts  of  Jupiter,  the  surface  of  the 
moon,  the  rings  of  Saturn,  and  several  portions  of  the  starry 
heavens,  are  frequently  changing  or  varying  their  aspects. 
On  the  earth,  mountains  are  crumbling  down,  the  caverns 
of  the  ocean  filling  up,  islands  are  emerging  from  the  bot¬ 
tom  of  the  sea,  and  again  sinking  into  the  abyss  ;  the  ocean 
is  frequently  shifting  its  boundaries,  and  trees,  plants,  and 
waving  grain  now  adorn  many  tracts  which  were  once  over¬ 
whelmed  with  the  foaming  billows.  Earthquakes  have  pro¬ 
duced  frequent  devastations,  volcanoes  have  overwhelmed 
fruitful  fields  with  torrents  of  burning  lava,  and  even  the 
solid  strata  within  the  bowels  of  the  earth  have  been  bent 
and  disrupted  by  the  operation  of  some  tremendous  power 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE.  89 

The  invisible  atmosphere  is  likewise  the  scene  of  perpetual 
changes  and  revolutions,  by  the  mixture  and  decomposition 
of  gases,  the  respiration  of  animals,  the  process  ot  evapora¬ 
tion,  the  action  of  winds,  and  the  agencies  of  light,  heat, 
and  the  electric  and  magnetic  fluids.  The  vegetable  king¬ 
dom  is  either  progressively  advancing  to  maturity  or  falling 
into  decay.  Between  the  plants  and  the  seeds  of  vegetables 
there  is  no-t  the  most  distant  similarity.  A  small  seed,  only 
one-tenth  of  an  inch  in  diameter,  after  rotting  for  a  while  in 
the  earth,  shoots  forth  a  stem  ten  thousand  times  greater 
in  size  than  the  germ  from  which  it  sprung,  the  branches  cf 
which  afforded  an  ample  shelter  for  the  fowls  of  heaven.^ 
The  tribes  of  animated  nature  are  likewise  in  a  state  ot 
progressive  change,  either  from  infancy  to  maturity  and  old 
age,  or  from  one  state  of  existence  to  another.  The  cater¬ 
pillar  is  first  an  egg,  next  a  crawling  worm,  then  a  nymph 
or  chrysalis,  and  afterwards  a  butterfly  adorned  with  the 
most  gaudy  colours.  Tbe  may-bug  beetle  burrows  in  the 
earth  where  it  drops  its  egg,  from  which  its  young  creeps 
out  in  the  shape  of  a  maggot,  which  casts  its  skin  every 
year,  and,  in  the  fourth  year,  it  bursts  from  the  earth,  un¬ 
folds  its  wings,  and  sails  in  rapture  “  through  the  soft  air.” 
The  animal  and  vegetable  tribes  are  blended,  by  a  variety 
of  wonderful  and  incessant  changes.  Animal  productions 
afford  food  and  nourishment  to  the  vegetable  tribes,  and  the 
various  parts  of  animals  are  compounded  of  matter  derived 
from  the  vegetable  kingdom.  The  wool  of  the  sheep,  the 
horns  of  the  cow,  the  teeth  of  the  lion,  the  feathers  of  the 
peacock,  and  the  skin  of  the  deer — nay,  even  our  hands  and 
feet,  our  eyes  and  ears,  with  which  we  handle  and  walk,  see 
and  hear,  and  the  crimson  fluid  that  circulates  in  our  veins 
— are  derived  from  plants  and  herbs  which  once  grew  in 
the  fields,  which  demonstrate  the  literal  truth  of  the  ancient 
saying,  “  All  flesh  is  grass.” 

Still,  however,  amidst  these  various  and  unceasing 
changes  and  transformations,  no  example  of  annihilation 
has  yet  occurred  to  the  eye  of  the  most  penetrating  observer. 
When  a  piece  of  coal  undergoes  the  process  of  combustion, 
its  previous  form ■  disappears,  and  its  component  parts  are 
dissolved,  but  the  elementary  particles  of  which  it  was  com¬ 
posed  still  remain  in  existence.  Part  of  it  is  changed  into 
caloric,  part  into  gas,  and  part  into  tar,  smoke,  and  ashes, 
which  are  soon  formed  into  other  combinations.  When 
vegetables  die,  or  are  decomposed  by  heat  or  cold,  they  are 

8* 


90 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OP  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


resolved  into  their  primitive  elements,  caloric,  light,  hydro¬ 
gen,  oxygen,  and  carbon, — which  immediately  enter  into 
new  combinations,  and  assist  in  carrying  forward  the  designs 
of  Providence  in  other  departments  of  nature.  But  such 
incessant  changes,  so  far  from  militating  against  the  idea 
of  the  future  existence  of  man,  are,  in  reality,  presumtivo 
proofs  of  his  immortal  destination.  For,  if,  amidst  the 
perpetual  transformations,  changes,  and  revolutions,  that  are 
going  forward  throughout  universal  nature  in  all  its  depart¬ 
ments,  no  particle  of  matter  is  ever  lost,  or  reduced  to  no¬ 
thing,  it  is  in  the  highest  degree  improbable,  that  the  think¬ 
ing  principle  in  man  will  be  destroyed,  by  the  change 
which  takes  place  at  the  moment  of  his  dissolution.  That 
change,  however  great  and  interesting  to  the  individual,  may 
be  not  more  wonderful,  nor  more  mysterious  than  the  chan 
ges  which  take  place  in  the  different  states  of  existence  to 
which  a  caterpillar  is  destined.  This  animal,  as  already 
stated,  is  first  an  egg,  and  how  different  does  its  form  appear 
when  it  comes  forth  a  crawling  worm  ?  After  living  some 
time  in  the  caterpillar  state,  it  begins  to  languish,  and  ap¬ 
parently  dies ;  it  is  incased  in  a  tomb,  and  appears  devoid  of 
life  and  enjoyment.  After  a  certain  period  it  acquires  new 
life  and  vigour,  bursts  its  confinement,  appears  in  a  more 
glorious  form,  mounts  upwards  on  expanded  wings,  and 
traverses  the  regions  of  the  air.  And,  is  it  not  reasonable, 
from  analogy,  to  believe,  that  man,  in  his  present  state,  is 
only  the  rudiments  of  what  he  shall  be  hereafter  in  a  more 
expansive  sphere  of  existence?  and  that,  when  the  body  is 
dissolved  in  death,  the  soul  takes  its  ethereal  flight  into  a 
celestial  region,  puts  on  immortality,  and  becomes  “  all  eye, 
all  ear,  all  ethereal  and  divine  feeling?” 

Since,  then,  it  appears  that  annihilation  forms  no  part  of 
the  plan  of  the  Creator  in  the  material  world,  is  it  rea¬ 
sonable  to  suppose,  that  a  system  of  annihilation  is  in  in¬ 
cessant  operation  in  the  world  of  mind  ?  that  God  is  every 
day  creating  thousands  of  minds,  endued  with  the  most 
capacious  powers,  and,  at  the  same  time,  reducing  to  eternal 
destruction  thousands  of  those  which  he  had  formerly  crea¬ 
ted  ?  Shall  the  material  universe  exist  amidst  all  its  variety 
of  changes,  and  shall  that  noble  creature,  for  whose  sake 
the  universe  was  created,  be  cut  off  for  ever  in  the  infancy 
of  its  being,  and  doomed  to  eternal  forgetfulness  ?  Is  it 
consistent  with  the  common  dictates  of  reason  to  admit,  that 
matter  shall  have  a  longer  duration  than  mind,  which  gives 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


91 


motion  and  beauty  to  every  material  scene  ?  Shall  the 
noble  structures  of  St.  Paul  and  St.  Peter  survive 
ravages  of  time,  and  display  their  beautiful  proportions  to 
successive  generations,  while  Wren  and  Angelo,  the  archi 
tects  that  planned  them,  are  reduced  to  the  condition  of „the 
rlods  of  the  valley?  Shall  the  “  Novum  Organum  ot 
Bacon  and  the  “Optics”  and  “Principia”  of  Newton, 
descend  to  future  ages,  to  unfold  their  sublune  concep¬ 
tions,  while  the  illustrious  minds  which  gave  birth  to  these 
productions,  are  envoloped  in  the  darkness  of  eteinal  night 
There  appears  a  palpable  absurdity  and  inconsistency  m 
admitting  such  conclusions.  We  might  almost  as  soo 
believe  that  the  universe  would  continue  in  its  present  har¬ 
mony  and  order,  were  its  Creator  ceasing  to  exist.—  Sup¬ 
pose  that  the  Deity,  through  all  the  lapse  of  past  ages,  has 
supported  the  universe  by  such  miracles  of  power  and 
wisdom  as  have  already  been  displayed— merely  that  he 
might  please  himself  with  letting  it  fall  to  pieces,  and  enjoy 
the  spectacle  of  the  fabric  lying  in  ruins ’’-would  such  a 
design  be  worthy  of  Infinite  Wisdom,  or  conformable  to  the 
ideas  we  ought  to  entertain  of  a  Being  eternal  and  immuta¬ 
ble  in  his  nature,  and  possessed  of  boundless  perfections . 
But  suppose,  farther,  that  he  will  annihilate  that  rational 
nature  for  whose  sake  he  created  the  universe,  while  the 
material  fabric  was  still  permitted  to  remain  in  existence, 
would  it  not  appear  still  more  incompatible  with  the  attri¬ 
butes  of  a  Being  of  unbounded  goodness  and  intelligence  . 
To  blot  out  from  existence  the  rational  part  of  his  creation, 
and  to  cherish  desolation  and  a  heap  of  rubbish,  is i  such  an 
act  of  inconsistency,  that  the  mind  shrinks  back  with  horror 
at  the  thought  of  attributing  it  to  the  All-Wise  and  Benevo¬ 
lent  Creator.  ,  ,  „  .  , 

We  are,  therefore,  necessarily  led  to  the  following  conclu¬ 
sion  :  “That,  when  the  human  body  is  dissolved,  the  imma¬ 
terial  principle  by  which  it  was  animated,  continues  to  think 
and  act,  either  in  a  state  of  separation  from  all  body,  or  in 
some  material  vehicle  to  which  it  is  intimately  united,  and 
which  goes  off  with  it  at  death ;  or  else,  that  it  is  preserved 
by  the  Father  of  spirits  for  the  purpose  of  animating  a 
body  in  some  future  state.”  The  soul  contains  no  princi¬ 
ple  of  dissolution  within  itself,  since  it  is  an  immaterial  un¬ 
compounded  substance’;  and  therefore,  although  the  material 
creation  were  to  be  dissolved  and  to  fall  into  ruins,  its 


92 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


energies  might  still  remain  unimpaired,  and  its  faculties 
**  flourish  in  immortal  youth, 

Unhurt,  amidst  the  war  of  elements, 

The  wrecks  of  matter,  and  the  crush  of  worlds.” 

And  the  Creator  is  under  no  necessity  to  annihilate  the  soul 
for  want  of  power  to  support  its  faculties,  for  want  of  ob- 
jects  on  which  to  exercise  them,  or  for  want  of  space  to 
contain  the  innumerable  intelligences  that  are  incessantly 
emerging  into  existence;  for  the  range  of  immensity  is  the 
theatre  of  his  Omnipotence,  and  that  powerful  Energy 
which  has  already  brought  millions  of  systems  into  exis¬ 
tence,  can  as  easily  replenish  the  universe  with  ten  thou¬ 
sand  millions  more.  If  room  were  wanted  for  new  creations 
ten  thousand  additional  worlds  could  be  comprised  within 
the  limits  of  the  solar  system,  while  a  void  space  of  more 
than  a  hundred  and  eighty  thousand  miles  would  still  inter¬ 
vene  between  the  orbits  of  the  respective*  globes ;  and  the 
immeasurable  spaces  which  intervene  between  our  planeta¬ 
ry  system  and  the  nearest  stars,  would  afford  an  ample  range 
for  the  revolutions  of  millions  of  worlds.  And,  therefore 
although  every  soul,  on  quitting  its  mortal  frame,  were  cloth¬ 
ed  with  a  new  material  vehicle,  there  is  ample  scope  in  the 
spaces  of  the  universe,  and  in  the  omnipotent  energies  of 
the  Creator,  for  the  full  exercise  of  all  its  powers,  and  for 
every  enjoyment  requisite  to  its  happiness.  So  that  in  eve¬ 
ry  point  of  view  in  which  we  can  contemplate  the  soul  of 
man  and  the  perfections  of  its  Creator,  it  appears  not  only 
improbable,  but  even  absurd  in  the  highest  degree,  to  sup¬ 
pose  that  the  spark  of  intelligence  in  man  will  ever  be  ex¬ 
tinguished. 

SECTION  XI 

On  the  gloomy  considerations  and  absurd  consequences  in¬ 
volved  in  the  denial  of  a  future  state. 

The  denial  of  the  doctrine  of  a  future  state  involves  in  it 
an  immense  variety  of  gloomy  considerations  and  absurd 
consequences. 

If  the  doctrine  of  a  future  existence  be  set  aside,  man 
appears  an  enigma,  a  rude  abortion,  and  a  monster  in  na¬ 
ture,  his  structure  is  inexplicable,  and  the  end  for  w^hich  he 
was  created  an  unfathomable  mystery;  the  moral  world  is 
a  scene  of  confusion,  the  ways  of  Providence  a  dark  im- 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


03 

penetrable  maze,  the  universe  a  vast,  mysterious,  and  inex¬ 
plicable  system,  and  the  Deity  a  Being  whose  per.ections  and 
purposes  can  never  be  traced  nor  unfolded.  > 

F  Let  us  suppose,  for  a  few  moments,  that  there  1S  ®°  stat® 
of  existence  beyond  the  grave,  and  consequently,  that  the 
supposed  discoveries  of  Revelation  are  a  mere  delusion;  and 
consider  some  of  the  gloomy  prospects  and  absurd  conse¬ 
quences  to  which  such  a  supposition  necessarily  leads.  1 
shall  suppose  myself  standing  in  an  attitude  of  serious  con¬ 
templation,  and  of  anxious  inquiry  respecting  the  various 
scenes  and  objects  which  surround  me,  and  the  events  that 

pass  under  my  review : —  .  ,  T  >» 

I  first  of  all  look  into  myself,  and  inquire,  whence  I  came  . 
whither  I  am  going?  who  produced  me?  of  what  my  body 
is  composed  ?  what  is  the  nature  of  my  senses?  of  the  think¬ 
ing  principle  I  feel  within  me?  and  for  what  purpose  was  1 
ushered  into  being?  I  perceive  in  my  body  a  wonderful 
mechanism  which  I  cannot  comprehend:  I  find  by  experi¬ 
ence,  that  my  will  exercises  a  sovereign  power  over  my 
muscular  system, -so  that  my  hands,  feet,  arms,  and  limbs, 
are  disposed  to  obey  every  impulse,  and,  at  the  signal  of  a 
wish,  to  transport  my  body  from  one  place  to  another.  1 
find  my  thinking  principle  intimately  connected  with  my 
coporeal  frame,  and  both  acting  reciprocally  on  each  other; 
but  I  cannot  fathom  the  manner  in  which  these  operations 
are  effected.  I  feel  ardent  desires  after  enjoyments  in  which 
I  never  shall  participate,  and  capacities  for  knowledge  and 
improvement  which  I  never  can  attain.  I  feel  restless  and 
uneasy,  even  amidst  the  beauties  of  nature,  and  the  plea¬ 
sures  of  the  senses.  I  ask  whence  proceeds  the  want  I  feel 
amidst  all  my  enjoyments  ?  Wherefore  can  I  never  cease 
from  wishing  for  something  in  addition  to  what  I  now  pos¬ 
sess?  Whence  arise  the  disgust  that  so  quickly  succeeds 
every  sensitive  enjoyment,  and  the  want  I  feel  even  in  the 
midst  of  abundance  ?  I  ask  why  I  was  called  into  existence 
at  this  point  of  duration,  rather  than  at  any  other  period  of 
that  incomprehensible  eternity  which  is  past,  or  of  that 
which  isyetto  come?  why,  amidstthe  vast  spaces  with  which 
I  am  encompassed,  and  the  innumerable  globes  which  sur¬ 
round  me,  I  was  chained  down  to  this  obscure  corner  of 
creation  from  which  I  feel  unable  to  transport  myself?  why 
I  was  ushered  into  life  in  Britain,  and  not  in  Papua  or  New 
Zealand  ?  and  why  I  was  formed  to  walk  erect  and  not  prone, 
as  the  inferior  animals?  To  all  such  inquiries  I  can  find 


94 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


no  satisfactory  answers, — the  whole  train  of  circumstances 
connected  with  my  existence  appears  involved  in  impenetra¬ 
ble  darkness  and  mystery.  Of  one  thing  only  I  am  fully 
assured,  that  my  body  shall,  ere  long,  be  dissolved  and  min¬ 
gle  with  the  dust,  and  my  intellectual  faculties,  desires,  and 
capacities  for  knowledge  be  for  ever  annihilated  in  the  tomb. 
I  shall  tiien  be  reduced  to  nothing,  and  be  as  though  I  never 
had  been,  while  myriads  of  beings,  like  myself  shall  start 
into  existence,  and  perish  in  like  manner,  in  perpetual  suc¬ 
cession,  throughout  an  eternity  to  come. 

I  look  backward  through  ages  past — I  behold  every  thing 
wrapped  in  obscurity,  and  perceive  no  traces  of  a  beginning 
to  the  vast  system  around  me, — I  stretch  forward  towards 
futurity,  and  perceive  no  prospect  of  an  end.  All  things 
appear  to  continue  as  they  were  from  generation  to  genera¬ 
tion,  invariably  subjected  to  the  same  movements,  revolu¬ 
tions,  and  changes,  without  any  distinct  marks  which  indi¬ 
cate  either  a  beginning  or  an  end. — I  look  around  on  the 
scene  of  terrestrial  nature — I  perceive  many  beauties  in  the 
verdant  landscape,  and  many  objects  the  mechanism  of 
which  is  extremely  delicate  and  admirable — I  inhale  the 
balmy  zephyrs,  am  charmed  with  the  music  of  the  groves, 
the  splendour  of  the  sun,  and  the  variegated  colouring 
spread  over  the  face  of  creation.  But  I  behold  other 
scenes,  which  inspire  melancholy  and  terror.  The  tempest, 
the  hurricane,  and  the  tornado;  the  sirocco,  the  samiel,  and 
other  poisonous  winds  of  the  desert;  the  appalling  thunder¬ 
cloud,  the  forked  lightnings,  the  earthquake  shaking  king¬ 
doms,  and  the  volcano  pouring  fiery  streams  around  its  base, 
which  desolate  villages  and  cities  in  their  course. — I  behold 
in  one  place  a  confused  assemblage  of  the  ruins  of  nature  in 
the  form  of  snow-capped  mountains,  precipices,  chasms,  and 
caverns ;  in  another,  extensive  marshes,  and  immense  deserts 
of  barren  sand ;  and,  in  another,  a  large  proportion  of  the 
globe  a  scene  of  sterile  desolation,  and  bound  in  the  fetters 
of  eternal  ice.  I  know  not  what  opinion  to  form  of  a  world 
where  so  many  beauties  are  blended  with  so  much  deformity, 
and  so  many  pleasures  mingled  with  so  many  sorrows  and 
scenes  of  terror, — or  what  ideas  to  entertain  of  Him  who 
formed  it.  But  I  need  give  myself  no  trouble  in  inquiring 
into  such  subjects;  for  my  time  on  earth  is  short  and  uncer¬ 
tain,  and  when  I  sink  into  the  arms  of  death,  I  shall  have  no 
more  ponnexica  w’th  the  aniverse. 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


95 


L  take  a  retrospective  view  of  the  moral  world  in  past 
fcges,  in  so  far  as  authentic  history  serves  as  a  guide,  and 
perceive  little  else  but  anarchy,  desolation,  and  carnage 
the  strong  oppressing  the  weak,  the  powerful  and  wealthy 
trampling  under  foot  the  poor  and  indigent— plunderers, 
robbers,  and  murderers  ravaging  kingdoms,  and  drenching 
the  earth  with  human  gore.  I  behold  the  virtuous  and  in¬ 
nocent  persecuted,  robbed,  and  massacred,  while  bloody  ty¬ 
rants  and  oppressors  roll  in  their  splendid  chariots,  and  leve 
amidst  the  luxuries  of  a  palace.  In  such  scenes  I  perceive 
nothing  like  regularity  or  order,  nor  any  traces  of  justice  01 
equity  in  the  several  allotments  of  mankind;  for  since  their 
whole  existence  terminates  in  the  grave,  the  virtuous  suffer¬ 
er  can  never  be  rewarded,  nor  the  unrighteous  despot  suffer 
the  punishment  due  to  his  crimes.  The  great  mass  of  hu¬ 
man  beings  appear  to  be  the  sport  of  circumstances,  the 
victims  of  oppression,  and  the  dupes  of  knavery  and  ambi¬ 
tion,  and  the  moral  world  at  large  an  assemblage  of  discor¬ 
dant  elements  tossed  about  like  dust  before  the  whirlwind. 

I  hear  virtue  applauded,  and  vice  denounced  as  odious  and 
hateful.  But  what  is  virtue?  A  shadow,  a  phantom,  an 
empty  name?  Why  should  I  follow  after  virtue  if  she  in¬ 
terrupts  my  pleasures,  and  why  should  I  forsake  vice  if  she 
points  out  the  path  to  present  enjoyment?  It  is  my  wisdom 
to  enjoy  life  during  the  short  period  it  continues;  and  if 
riches  be  conducive  to  my  enjoyment  of  happiness,  why 
should  I  fear  to  procure  them  either  by  deceit,  perjury,  or 
rapine?  If  sensual  indulgence  contribute  to  my  pleasure, 
why  should  I  refrain  from  drunkenness  and  debauchery,  or 
any  other  action  that  suits  my  convenience  or  gratifies  my 
passions,  since  present  enjoyments  are  all  I  can  calcu¬ 
late  uporr,  and  no  retributions  await  me  beyond  the  grave. 

I  feel  myself  subjected  to  a  variety  of  sufferings,  disap¬ 
pointments,  and  sorrows— to  poverty  and  reproach,  loss  of 
friends,  corporeal  pains  and  mental  anguish.  I  am  fre¬ 
quently  tortured  by  the  recollection  of  the  past,  the  feeling  of 
the  present,  and  the  dread  of  approaching  sufferings.  But 
I  see  no  object  to  be  attained,,  no  end  to  be  accomplished  by 
my  subjection  to  such  afflictions :  I  suffer  merely  for  the 
purpose  of  feeling  pain,  wasting  my  body  and  hastening 
its  dissolution:  I  am  sick  only  to  languish  under  the  bur¬ 
den  of  a  feeble  emaciated  frame — perplexed  and  downcast 
only  to  sink  into  deeper  perplexities  and  sorrows ;  oppress¬ 
ed  with  cares  and  difficulties  only  to  enter  on  a  new  scene 


06 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


of  danger  and  suffering.  No  drop  of  comfort  mingles  itself 
with  the  bitter  cup  of  sorrow:  no  affliction  is  sweetened 
and  alleviated  by  the  prospect  of  a  better  world;  for  the 
gloomy  mansions  of  the  grave  bound  my  views  and  terminate 
all  my  hopes  and  fears.  How,  then,  can  I  be  easy  under  my 
sufferings?  how  can  I  be  cordially  resigned  to  the  destiny 
which  appointed  them?  or  how  can  I  trace  the  benevolence 
of  a  superior  Being  in  permitting  me  thus  to  be  pained  and 
tormented  for  no  end  ?  I  will  endeavour  to  bear  them  with 
resolute  desperation,  merely  because  I  am  borne  down  by 
necessity  to  pain  and  affliction,  and  cannot  possibly  avoid 
them. 

I  lift  my  eyes  to  the  regions  above,  and  contemplate  the 
splendours  of  the  starry  frame.  What  an  immensity  of 
suns,  and  systems,  and  worlds  burst  upon  my  view,  when  I 
apply  the  telescope  to  the  spaces  of  the  firmament!  How 
incalculable  their  number!  how  immeasurable  their  dis¬ 
tance!  how  immense  their  magnitude!  how  glorious  their 
splendour!  how  sublime  their  movements!  When  I  at¬ 
tempt  to  grasp  this  stupendous  scene,  my  imagination  is  be¬ 
wildered,  and  my  faculties  overpowered  with  wonder  and 
amazement.  I  gaze,  I  ponder;  I  feel  a  longing  desire  to 
know  something  farther  respecting  the  nature  and  destina¬ 
tion  of  these  distant  orbs ;  but  my  vision  is  bounded  to  a 
general  glimpse,  my  powers  are  limited,  and  when  I  would 
fly  away  to  those  distant  regions,  I  find  myself  chained 
down,  by  an  overpowering  force,  to  the  dimnutive  ball  on 
which  I  dwell.  Wherefore,  then,  were  the  heavens  so 
beautifully  adorned,  and  so  much  magnificence  displayed  in 
their  structure,  and  why  were  they  ever  presented  to  my 
view;  since  I  am  never  to  become  farther  acquainted  with 
the  scenes  they  unfold !  Perhaps  this  is  the  last  glance  I 
shall  take  of  the  mighty  concave,  before  my  eyes  have 
closed  in  endless  night.  f‘ Wherefore  was  light  given  to 
him  that  is  in  misery, — to  a  man  whose  way  is  hid,  and 
whom  God  hath  hedged  in?”  Had  I  been  enclosed  in  a 
gloomy  dungeon  my  situation  had  been  tolerable,  but  here 
I  stand  as  in  a  splendid  palace,  without  comfort  and  without 
hope,  expecting  death  every  moment  to  terminate  my  pros¬ 
pects  ;  and  when  it  arrives,  the  glories  of  the  heavens  to 
me  will  be  annihilated  for  ever. 

I  behold  science  enlarging  its  boundaries,  and  the  arts  ad¬ 
vancing  towards  perfection  ;  I  see  numerous  institutions 
organizing,  and  hear  lectures  on  philosophy  delivered  for 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE.  97 

the  improvement  of  mankind,  and  I  am  invited  to  take  a 
part  in  those  arrangements  which  are  calculated  to  produce 
a  general  diffusion  of  knowledge  among  all  ranks.  But  of 
what  use  is  knowledge  to  beings  who  are  soon  to  lose  all 
consciousness  of  existence  1  It  requires  many  weary  steps 
and  sleepless  nights  to  climb  the  steep  ascent  of  science; 
and  when  we  have  arrived  at  the  highest  point  which  mor¬ 
tals  have  ever  reached,  we  descry  still  loftier  regions  which 
we  never  can  approach, — our  footing  fails,  and  down  we 
sink  into  irretrievable  ruin.  If  our  progress  in  science  here 
were  introductory  to  a  future  scene  of  knowledge  and  en¬ 
joyment,  it  would  be  worthy  of  being  prosecuted  by  every 
rational  intelligence ;  but  to  beings  who  are  uncertain  wheth¬ 
er  they  shall  exist  in  the  universe  for  another  day,  it  is  not 
only  superfluous,  but  unfriendly  to  their  present  enjoyments. 
For,  the  less  knowledge  they  acquire  of  the  beauties  and 
sublimities  of  nature,  and  the  more  brutish,  ignorant,  and 
sottish  they  become,  the  less  will  they  feel  at  the  moment 
when  they  are  about  to  be  launched  into  non-existence. 
Let  the  mass  of  mankind,  then,  indulge  themselves  in  what¬ 
ever  frivolous  amusements  they  may  choose  ;  do  not  inter¬ 
rupt  their  sensual  pleasures,  by  vainly  attempting  to  engage 
them  in  intellectual  pursuits ;  let  them  eat  and  drink,  and 
revel  and  debauch,  for  to-morrow  they  die.  All  that  is  re¬ 
quisite,  is,  to  entwine  the  chains  of  despotism  around  their 
necks,  to  prevent  them  from  aspiring  after  the  enjoyments  of 
their  superiors. 

In  short,  I  endeavour  to  form  some  conceptions  of  the 
attributes  of  that  Great  Unknown  Cause  which  produced 
all  things  around  me.  But  my  thoughts  become  bewildered 
amidst  a  maze  of  unaccountable  operations,  of  apparent 
contradictions  and  inconsistencies.  I  evidently  perceive 
that  the  Creator  of  the  universe  is  possessed  of  boundless 
power,  but  I  see  no  good  reason  to  conclude  that  he  exer¬ 
cises  unerring  wisdom,  unbounded  goodness,  and  impartial 
justice.  I  perceive,  indeed,  some  traces  of  wisdom,  in  the 
construction  of  my  body  and  its  several  organs  of  sensa¬ 
tion;  and  of  goodness,  in  the  smiling  day,  the  flowery  land¬ 
scape,  and  the  fertile  plains ;  but  I  know  not  how  to  reconcile 
these  with  other  of  parts  of  his  operations.  How  c-an  I  at¬ 
tribute  the  perfection  of  wisdom  to  One  who  has  implanted 
in  my  constitution  desires  which  will  never  be  gratified,  and 
furnished  me  with  moral  and  intellectual  faculties  which 
will  never  be  fully  exercised,  and  who  has  permitted  the 

9 


98 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


moral  world  in  every  age  to  exhibit  a  scene  of  disorder? 
I  perceive  no  evidences  of  his  benevolence  in  subjecting 
me  to  a  variety  of  sorrows  and  sufferings  which  accomplish 
no  end  but  the  production  of  pain;  in  tantalizing  me  with 
hopes,  and  alarming  me  with  fears  of  futurity  which  are  never 
to  be  realized,  and  in  throwing  a  veil  of  mystery  over  all  his 
purposes  and  operations.  Nor  can  I  trace  any  thing  like 
impartial  justice  in  the  bestowments  of  his  favours,  for  dis¬ 
appointments  and  sorrows  are  equally  the  lot  of  the  righteous 
and  the  wicked,  and  frequently  it  happens  that  the  innocent 
are  punished  and  disgraced,  while  villains  and  debauchees  are 
permitted  to  glory  in  their  crimes.  All  that  I  can  plainly 
perceive,  is,  the  operation  of  Uncontrollable  Power,  di¬ 
rected  by  no  principle  but  caprice,  and  accomplishing  noth¬ 
ing  that  can  inspire  ardent  affection,  or  secure  the  perma 
nent  happiness  of  rational  beings. 

Such  are  some  of  the  gloomy  reflections  of  a  hopeless  mor¬ 
tal  whose  prospect  is  bounded  by  the  grave;  and  such  are' 
some  of  the  horrible  consequences  which  the  denial  of  a  fu¬ 
ture  state  necessarily  involves.  It  throws  a  veil  of  dark¬ 
ness  over  the  scenes  of  creation,  and  wraps  in  impenetra¬ 
ble  mystery  the  purposes  for  which  man  was  created,— it 
exhibits  the  moral  world  as  a  chaotic  mass  of  discordant 
elements,  accomplishing  no  end,  and  controlled  by  no  in¬ 
telligent  agency, — it  represents  mankind  as  connected  with 
each  other  merely  by  time  and  place,  as  formed  merely  for 
sensual  enjoyment,  and  destined  to  perish  with  the  brutes, 
it  subverts  the  foundations  of  moral  action,  removes  the 
strongest  motives  to  the  practice  of  virtue,  and  opens  the 
flood-gates  of  every  vice, — it  removes  the  anchor  of  hope 
from  the  anxious  mind,  and  destroys  every  principle  that  has 
a  tendency  to  support  us  in  the  midst  of  sufferings, — it 
throws  a  damp  on  every  effort  to  raise  mankind  to  the  dig¬ 
nity  of  their  moral  and  intellectual  natures,  and  is  calculated 
to  obstruct  the  progress  of  u-seful  science, —  it  prevents  the 
mind  from  investigating  and  admiring  the  beauties  of  crea¬ 
tion,  and  ‘nvolves  in  a  deeper  gloom  the  ruins  of  nature 
which  are  scattered  over  the  globe, — it  terminates  every 
prospect  of  becoming  more  fully  acquainted  with  the  glories 
of  the  firmament,  and  every  hope  of  beholding  the  plans 
of  Providence  completely  unfolded, — it  involves  the  charac¬ 
ter  of  the  Deity  in  awful  obscurity,  it  deprives  Him  of  the 
attributes  of  infinite  wisdom, benevolence,  and  rectitude,  and 
leaves  him  little  more  than  boundless  omnipotence,  acting 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


99 


at  random,  and  controlled  by  no  beneficent  agency*  In 
short,  it  obliterates  every  motive  to  the  performance  of 
noble  and  generous  actions,  damps  the  finest  feelings  and 
affections  of  humanity,  leads  to  universal  scepticism,  cuts 
off  the  prospect  of  every  thing  which  tends  to  cheer  the 
traveller  in  his  pilgrimage  through  life,  and  presents  to  his 
view  nothing  but  an  immense  blank  overspread  with  the 

blackness  of  darkness  for  ever. 

Such  beino-  the  blasphemous  and  absurd  consequences 
which  flow  from  the  denial  of  the  doctrine  of  a  future  state 
of  retribution— the  man  who  obstinately  maintains  such  a 
position,  must  be  considered  as  unworthy  not  only  of  the 
name  of  a  philosopher,  but  of  that  of  a  rational  being,  and 
as  one  who  would  believe  against  demonstration,  and 
swallow  any  absurdity,  however  extravagant,  which  quad¬ 
rates  with  his  grovelling  appetites  and  passions.  .  Mathemati¬ 
cians  frequently  demonstrate  a  truth  by  showing  that  its 
contrary  is  impossible,  or  involves  an  absurdity,  Inus, 
Euclid  demonstrates  the  truth  of  the  fourth  proposition  of 
the  first  book  of  his  Elements,  by  showing  that  its  contrary 
implies  this  obvious  absurdity— “  that  two  straight  lines 
may  inclose  a  space.”  This  mode  of  proving  the  truth  of 
a  proposition  is  considered  by  every  geometrician,  as  equally 
conclusive  and  satisfactory,  as  the  direct  method  of  demon¬ 
stration  ;  because  the  contrary  of  every  falsehood  must  be 
truth,  and  the  contrary  of  every  truth,  falsehood.  A.nci  if 
this  mode  of  demonstration  is  conclusive  in  mathematics, 
it  on  edit  tube  considered  as  equally  conclusive  in  moral  and 
theological  reasoning.  If,  for  example,  the  denial  of  a 
future  existence  involves  in  it  the  idea  that  God  is  not  a 
Being  possessed  of  impartial  justice,  and  of  perfect  wisdom 
and  goodness — notwithstanding  the  striking  displays  of  the 
two  last-mentioned  attributes  in  the  system  ot  nature  we 
must,  I  presume,  either  admit  the  doctrine  of  the  immor¬ 
tality  of  man,  or  deny  that  a  Supreme  Intelligence  presides 
over  the  affairs  of  the  universe.  -  For,  a  Being  divested  of 
these  attributes  is  not  entitled  to  the  name  of  Deity,  nor 
calculated  to  inspire  intelligent  minds  with  adoration  and 
love  ;  but  is  reduced  to  something  like  uncontrollable  fate, 
or  mere  physical  force,  impelling  the  movements  of  univer¬ 
sal  nature  without  a  plan,  without  discrimination,  and 
without  intelligence.  On  the  same  principle  (the  jeauctro 
ad  absvrdum )  we  demonstrate  the  earth’s  annual  revolution 
round  the  sun.  The  motions  of  the  planets,  as  viewed 


00 


1  HE  PniLOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


from  the  earth,  present  an  inexplicable  maze,  contrary  to 
every  thing  we  should  expect  in  a  well-arranged  and  orderly 
system.  These  bodies  appear  sometimes  to  move  back¬ 
wards,  sometimes  forwards,  sometimes  to  remain  stationary, 
and  to  describe  looped  curves,  so  anomalous  or  confused, 
that  we  cannot  suppose  an  Infinite  Intelligence  the  contriver 
of  a  system  of  such  inextricable  confusion.  Hence  the  as¬ 
tronomer  concludes,  on  good  grounds,  that  the  earth  is  a 
moving  body;  and  no  one  thoroughly  acquainted  with  the 
subject  ever  calls  it  in  question  :  for  when  our  globe  is  con¬ 
sidered  as  revolving  round  the  centre  of  the  system  in 
concert  with  the  other  planetary  orbs,  all  the  apparent  irre¬ 
gularities  in  their  motions  are  completely  accounted  for, 
and  the  whole  system  appears  reduced  to  a  beautiful  and 
harmonious  order,  in  accordance  with  every  idea  we  ought 
to  form  of  the  wisdom  and  intelligence  of  its  author. 

In  the  same  way,  the  admission  of  the  doctrine  of  a  future 
state  accounts  for  the  apparent  irregularities  of  the  moral 
world,  and  affords  a  key  for  the  solution  of  all  the  difficulties 
that  may  arise  in  the  mind  respecting  the  equity  of  the 
Divine  administration  in  the  present  slate.  In  opposition 
to  the  desponding  reflections  and  gloomy  views  of  the 
sceptic,  it  inspires  the  virtuous  mind  with  a  lively  hope,  and 
throws  a  glorious  radiance  over  the  scenes  of  creation,  and 
over  every  part  of  the  government  of  the  Almighty.  It 
exhibits  the  Self-existent  and  Eternal  Mind  as  an  object  of 
ineffable  sublimity,  grandeur,  and  loveliness,  invested  with 
unerring  wisdom,  impartial  justice,  and  boundless  benevo¬ 
lence,  presiding  over  an  endless  train  of  intelligent  minds 
formed  after  his  image,  governing  them  with  just  and 
equitable  laws,  controlling  all  things  by  an  almighty  and 
unerring  hand,  and  rendering  all  his  dispensations  ultimately 
conducive  to  the  happiness  of  the  moral  universe.  It 
presents  before  us  an  unbounded  scene,  in  which  we  may 
hope  to  contemplate  the  scheme  of  Providence  in  all  its 
objects  and  bearings,  where  the  glories  of  the  divine  perfec¬ 
tions  will  be  illustriously  displayed,  where  the  powers  of 
the  human  mind  will  be  perpetually  expanding,  and  new 
objects  of  sublimity  and  beauty  incessantly  rising  to  the 
view,  in  boundless  perspective,  world  without  end.  It 
dispels  the  clouds  that  hang  over  the  present  and  future 
destiny  of  man,  and  fully  accounts  for  those  longing  looks 
into  futurity  which  accompany  us  at  every  turn,  and  those 
tcapacious  powers  of  intellect,  which  cannot  be  fully  exerted 


PROOFS  FROM  THR  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


101 


in  the  present  life.  It  presents  the  most  powerful  motives 
to  a  life  of  virtue,  to  the  performance  of  beneficent  and 
heroic  actions,  to  the  prosecution  of  substantial  science,  and 
to  the  diffusion  of  useful  knowledge  among  all  ranks  of  man¬ 
kind.  It  affords  the  strongest  consolation  and  support, 
amidst  the  trials  of  life,  and  explains  the  reasons  of  those 
sufferings  to  which  we  are  here  exposed,  as  being  incentives 
to  the  exercise  of  virtue,  and  as  “  working  out  for  us  afar 
more  exceeding  and  eternal  weight  of  glory.”  It  affords 
us  ground  to  hope  that  the  veil  which  now  ntercepts  our 
view  of  the  distant  regions  of  creation,  vrll  be  withdrawn, 
and  that  the  amazing  structure  of  the  universe,  in  all  its 
sublime  proportions  and  beautiful  arrangements,  will  be 
more  clearly  unfolded  to  our  view.  It  dispels  the  terrors 
which  naturally  surround  the  messenger  of  death,  and 
throws  a  radiance  over  the  mansions  of  the  tomb.  It  cheers 
the  gloomy  vale  of  death,  and  transforms  it  into  a  passage 
which  leads  to  a  world  of  perfection  and  happiness,  where 
moral  evil  shall  be  for  ever  abolished,  where  intellectual 
light  shall  beam  with  effulgence  on  the  enraptured  spirit, 
and  where  celestial  virtue,  now  so  frequently  persecuted 
and  contemned,  shall  be  enthroned  in  undisturbed  and 
eternal  empire. 

Since,  then,  it  appears,  that  the  denial  of  a  future  state 
involves  in  it  so  many  difficulties,  absurd  consequences,  and 
biasphe  mo  u  s'  a  s  s  u  m  p  ti  o  n  s,  and  the  admission  of  this  doctrine 
throws  a  light  over  the  darkness  that  broods  over  the  moral 
world,  presents  a  clue  to  unravel  the  mazes  of  the  divine 
dispensations,  and  solves  every  difficulty  in  relation  to  the 
present  condition  of  the  human  race— the  pretended  phi¬ 
losopher  who  rejects  this  important  truth  must  be  consider¬ 
ed  as  acting  in  direct  opposition  to  those  p  Viciples  of  rea¬ 
soning  which  he  uniformly  admits  in  his  physical  and 
mathematical  investigations,  and  as  determined  to  resist  the 
force  of  every  evidence  which  can  be  adduced  in  proof  of 
his  immortal  destination. 

Thus  I  have  endeavoured,  in  the  preceding  pages,  to  prove 
and  illustrate  the  immortality  of  man,  from  a  consideration 
of  the  universal  belief  which  this  doctrine  has  obtained 
among  all  nations — the  desire  of  immortality  implanted  in 
the  human  breast— -the  strong  desire  of  knowledge,  and  the 
capacious  intellectual  powers  with  winch  man  is  furnished 
the  capacity  of  making  ‘perpetual  progress  towards  intellec- 

9* 


102 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OP  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


tual  and  moral  perfection — the  unlimited  range  of  view 
which  is  opened  to  the  human  mind  throughout  the  immen¬ 
sity  of  space  and  duration — the  moral  powers  of  action 
with  which  man  is  endued — the  forebodings  and  apprehen¬ 
sions  of  the  mind  when  under  the  influence  of  remorse — the 
disordered  state  of  the  moral  world  when  contrasted  with  the 
systematical  order  of  the  material — the  unequal  distribution 
of  rewards  and  punishments,  viewed  in  connexion  with  the 
justice  of  God  — the  absurdity  of  admitting  that  the  thinking 
principle  in  man  will  be  annihilated — and  the  blasphemous 
and  absured  consequences  which  would  follow  if  the  idea  of 
a  future  state  of  retribution  were  rejected. 

Perhaps  there  are  some  of  these  arguments,  taken  singly 
that  would  be  insufficient  fully  to  establish  the  truth  of  man’s 
eternal  destiny;  but  when  taken  in  combination  with  each 
other,  they  carry  irresistible  evidence  to  the  mind  of  every 
unbiassed  inquirer.  They  all  reflect  a  mutual  lustre  on 
each  other;  they  hang  together  in  perfect  harmony;  they 
are  fully  consistent  with  the  most  amiable  and  sublime  con¬ 
ceptions  we  can  form  of  the  Deity;  they  are  congenial  to 
the  sentiments  entertained  by  the  wisest  and  best  of  men 
in  every  age  ;  they  are  connected  with  all  the  improvements 
and  discoveries  in  the  moral  ana  physical  worlds;  and,  like 
the  radii  of  a  circle,  they  all  converge  to  the  same  point, 
and  lead  directly  to  the  same  conclusion.  It  appears  next 
to  impossible,  that  such  a  mutual  harmony,  consistency,  and 
dependence,  could  exist  among  a  series  of  propositions  that 
had  no  foundation  in  truth;  and,  therefore,  they  ought  to  be 
considered,  when  taken  conjunctly,  as  having  all  the  force 
of  a  moral  demonstration.  They  rest  on  the  same  princi¬ 
ples  and  process  of  i-easoning  from  which  we  deduce  the  be¬ 
ing  of  a  God;  and  I  see  no  way  of  eluding  their  force,  but 
by  erasing  from  the  mind  every  idea  of  a  Supreme  Intelli¬ 
gence.  Hence,  it  has  generally,  I  might  say,  uniformly  been 
found,  that  all  nations  that  have  acknowledged  the  existence 
of  a  Divine  Being,  have  likewise  recognized  the  idea  of  a 
future  state  of  retribution.  These  two  fundamental  propo¬ 
sitions  are  so  intimately  connected,  and  the  hitter  is  so  es¬ 
sentially  dependant  on  the  former,  that  they  must  stand  or 
fall  together.  And,  consequently,  we  find,  that  the  man  who 
obstinately  rejects  the  doctrine  of  a  future  state,  either  avows 
himself  a  downright  atheist,  or  acts  precisely  in  the  same 
way  as  a  person  would  do,  ’who  believes  that  a  supreme 
Moral  Governor  has  no  existence. 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


103 


But  even  the  principles  of  atheism  itself,  though  frequent¬ 
ly  embraced  by  vicious  characters  to  allay  their  fears,  are 
not  sufficient  to  remove  all  apprehensions  in  regard  to  a 
future  existence.  For,  if  the  universe  be  the  production 
merely  of  an  eternal  succession  of  causes  and  effects,  pro¬ 
duced  by  blind  necessity  impelling  the  atoms  of  matter 
through  the  voids  of  immensity — what  should  hinder,  that 
amidst  the  infinite  combinations  arising  from  perpetual  mo¬ 
tion,  men  should  be  created,  destroyed,  and  again  usnered 
into  existence,  with  the  same  faculties,  reminiscences,  percep¬ 
tions,  and  relations  as  in  their  former  state  of  existence? 
And,  although  thousands  or  millions  of  years  should  inter¬ 
vene  between  such  transformations,  yet  such  periods  might 
appear  as  short  and  imperceptible  as  the  duration  which 
passes  while  our  faculties  are  absorbed  in  a  sound  repose. 
The  idea  of  infinity,  immensity,  and  an  endless  succession 
of  changes,  renders  such  a  supposition  not  altogether  im¬ 
possible?  But  what  a  dreadful  futurity  might  not  the  mind 
be  left  to  picture  to  itself  in  such  a  case?  If  the  move¬ 
ments  of  the  universe  were  the  production  of  chance,  di¬ 
rected  by  no  intelligent  agency,  we  should  incessantly  be 
haunted  with  the  most  dreadful  anticipations.  We  should 
see  the  images  of  death,  annihilation,  and  reproduction  ad 
vancing  before  us  in  the  most  terrific  forms,  and  should  find 
it  impossible  to  determine  on  what  foundation  the  hopes  and 
the  destiny  of  intelligences  reposed.  We  should  be  uncer¬ 
tain  whether  mankind  were  doomed  to  perish  irrecoverably, 
or,  by  the  operation  of  some  unknown  cause,  or  accident, 
to  be  reproduced  at  some  future  period  in  duration,  and 
devoted  to  endless  torments.  The  comparative  order  and 
tranquillity  which  now  subsist,  or  have  subsisted  for  ages 
past,  could  afford  us  no  ground  of  hope  that  such  consequen¬ 
ces  would  not  take  place:  for  all  the  revolutions  of  time  to 
which  we  can  look  back,  are  but  as  a  moment  in  the  midst 
of  infinite  duration,  and  the  whole  earth  but  a  point  in  the 
immensity  of  space.  So  that,  during  the  lapse  of  infinite 
ages,  changes,  revolutions,  and  transformations  might  be  ef¬ 
fected,  which  might  overwhelm  all  the  intelligent  beings  that 
ever  existed,  in  eternal  misery.  Hence  it  appears,  that  even 
atheism  itself,  with  all  its  mass  of  contradictions  and  ab¬ 
surdities,  cannot  entirely  shelter  its  abettors  from  the  ter¬ 
rors  of  an  unknown  futurity.  . 

I  shall  only  remark  farther,  on  this  part  of  my  subject,— 
that,  although  the  arguments  now  adduced  in  support  of  toe 


104 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


immortality  of  man  were  less  powerful  than  they  really  are, 
they  ought  to  make  a  deep  impression  on  the  mind  of  every 
reflecting  person,  and  determine  the  line  of  conduct  which 
he  ought  to  pursue.  If  they  were  only  probable — if  they 
possessed  no  greater  degree  of  weight  than  simply  to  over- 
bal  ance  the  opposite  arguments,  still,  it  would  be  every 
man’s  interest  to  acton  the  supposition,  that  a  future  world 
has  a  real  existence.  For,  in  the  ordinary  affairs  of  human 
life,  and  even  in  the  sciences,  our  opinions  and  conduct  are 
generally  determined  by  a  series  of  probabilities,  and  a  con¬ 
currence  of  reasons,  which  supply  the  want  of  more  conclu¬ 
sive  evidence  on  subjects  which  areont  susceptible  of  strict 
demonstration.  A  merchant,  when  he  purchases  a  certain 
commodity,  has  no  demonstrative  evidence  that  the  sale  of 
it  shall  ultimately  turn  to  his  advantage ;  but,  from  a  con¬ 
sideration  of  its  price  and  quality,  of  the  circumstances  of 
trade,  and  of  his  immediate  prospects,  he  determines  on  the 
purchase;  and,  by  acting  on  the  ground  of  similar  probabili¬ 
ties,  he  conducts  his  affairs,  so  as  to  issue  in  his  prosperity 
and  success.  A  philosopher  has  no  demonstrative  argu¬ 
ments  to  support  the  one  half  of  the  opinions  he  has  formed, 
in  relation  to  the  phenomena  of  human  society,  and  of  the 
material  world.  His  deductions  respecting  the  causes  of 
the  winds,  of  thunder  and  lightning,  of  volcanic  eruptions, 
of  the  nature  of  light,  sound,  electricity,  galvanism,  and 
other  operations  in  the  system  of  nature,  are  grounded  on 
that  species  of  reasoning  which  is  termed  analogical,  and 
which,  at  best,  amounts  to  nothing  more  than  a  lugh  de¬ 
gree  of  probability.  Notwithstanding,  lie  feels  no  hesita¬ 
tion  in  prosecuting  his  experiments  and  researches,  under 
the  guidance  of  such  reasoning,  confident  that  it  will  ulti¬ 
mately  lead  him  to  the  innermost  recesses  of  the  temple  of 
truth;  for  we  know,  that  the  most  splendid  discoveries  of 
modern  times,  have  originated  from  inquiries  and  observa¬ 
tions,  conducted  on  the  ground  of  analogical  reasoning. — 
In  like  manner,  in  the  important  subject  under  considera¬ 
tion,  we  ought  to  be  determined  in  our  views  and  conduct, 
even  by  probabilities ,  although  the  arguments  adduced 
should  leave  the  question  at  issue  in  some  measure  undeter¬ 
mined.  For,  if  an  eternal  world  has  a  real  existence,  we 
not  only  embrace  an  error  in  rejecting  this  idea,  but,  by  act¬ 
ing  in  conformity  with  our  erroneous  conceptions,  run  the 
risk  of  exposing  ourselves  to  the  most  dreadful  and  appal¬ 
ling  consequences.  Whereas,  if  there  be  no  future  state. 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


105 


the  belief  of  it,  accompanied  with  a  corresponding  conduct, 
can  produce  no  bad  effect  either  upon  our  own  minds  or 
those  of  others.  On  the  contrary,  it  would  prove  a  pleasing 
illusion  during  our  passage,  through  a  world  of  physical  and 
moral  evil,  and  would  revive  the  downcast  spirit,  when 
overwhelmed  with  the  disappointments  and  sorrows  which 
are  unavoidable  in  our  present  condition.  So  that,  even  in 
this  case,  we  might  adopt  the  sentiment  of  an  ancient  phi¬ 
losopher,*  and  say, — “If  I  am  wrong  in  believing  that  the 
souls  of  men  are  immortal,  I  please  myself  in  my  mistake; 
nor  while  I  live  will  I  ever  choose  that  this  opinion,  with 
which  lam  so  much  delighted,  should  be  wrested  from  me. 
But  if  at  death,  I  am  to  be  annihilated,  as  some  minute  phi¬ 
losophers  suppose,  I  am  not  afraid  lest  those  wise  men, 
when  extinct  too,  should  laugh  at  my  error.” 

But,  if  the  arguments  we  have  brought  forward,  amount, 
not  only  to  bare  probability,  but  to  moral  certainty ,  or,  at 
least,  to  something  nearly  approximating  to  moral  demon¬ 
stration — if  the  opposite  opinion  involves  a  train  of  absurdi¬ 
ties.  if  it  throws  a  dismal  gloom  over  the  destiny  of  man, 
and  over  the  scenes  of  the  universe,  and  if  it  robs  the  Al¬ 
mighty  of  the  most  glorious  and  distinguishing  attributes  of 
his  nature — no  words  are  sufficient  to  express  the  folly  and 
inconsistency  of  the  man,  by  whatever  title  he  may  be  dis¬ 
tinguished,  who  is  determined  to  resist  conviction,  and  who 
resolutely  acts,  as  if  the  idea  of  a  future  world  wrerea  mere 
chimera.  To  pass  through  life  with  indifference  and  uncon¬ 
cern,  to  overlook  the  solemn  scenes  of  the  invisible  world, 
and  to  brave  the  terrors  of  the  Almighty,  which  may  be  dis¬ 
played  in  that  state — in  the  face  of  such  powerful  argu¬ 
ments,  as  even  reason  can  produce — is  not  only  contrary  to 
everv  prudential  principle  of  conduct,  but  the  height  of  in¬ 
fatuation  and  madness.  Such  persons  must  be  left  to  be 
aroused  to  consideration,  by  the  awful  conviction  which  will 
flash  upon  their  minds,  when  they  are  transported  to  that 
eternal  state  which  they  now  disregard,  and  find  them¬ 
selves  placed  at  the  bar  of  an  Almighty  and  impartial 
Judge. 

Amorigr  the  considerations  which  have  been  adduced  to 
prove  the  immortality  of  man,  I  have  taken  no  notice  of  an 
argument,  which  is  almost  exclusively  dwelt  upon  by  some 
writers,  namely,  that  which  is  founded  on  the  immateriality 


*  Cicero. 


106 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


of  the  human  soul.  I  have  declined  entering  upon  any 
illustrations  of  this  topic, — 1.  Because  the  proof  of  the 
soul’s  immateriality  involves  a  variety  of  abstract  metaphy¬ 
sical  discussions,  and  requires  replies  to  various  objections 
which  have  been  raised  against  it,  which  would  tend  only 
to  perplex  readers  endowed  with  plain  common  sense.  2. 
Because  the  doctrine  of  the  immateriality  of  the  thinking 
principle,  however  clearly  it  may  be  proved,  can  add 
nothing  to  the  weight  of  the  considerations  already  brought 
forward ;  nor,  when  considered  by  itself,  can  it  afford  any 
conclusive  argument  in  favour  of  the  soul’s  immortality.  It 
simply  leads  us  to  this  conclusion, — that,  since  the  soul  is 
an  imcompounded  substance,  it  cannot  perish  by  a  decom¬ 
position  of  its  parts ;  and  consequently,  may  exist,  in  a 
separate  state,  in  the  full  exercise  of  its  powers,  after  its 
corporeal  tenement  is  dissolved.  But  its  immortality  cannot 
necessarily  be  inferred  from  its  natural  capacity  of  existing 
in  a  state  of  separation  from  the  body;  for  that  Being  who 
created  it  may,  if  he  pleases,  reduce  it  to  annihilation,  since 
all  the  works  of  God,  whether  material  or  immaterial, 
depend  wholly  on  that  power  by  which  they  were  originally 
brought  into  existence.  Its  immortality  depends  solely  on 
the  will  of  its  Creator,  without  whose  sustaining  energy  the 
whole  creation  would  sink  into  its  original  nothing.  If  it 
could  be  proved,  that  God  will  employ  his  power  to  annihi¬ 
late  the  soul,  in  vain  should  we  attempt  to  demonstrate  that 
it  is  naturally  immortal.  But  whether  God  wills  that  the 
soul  should  be  destroyed  at  death,  is  a  very  different  ques¬ 
tion  from  that  which  relates  to  its  nature  as  an  immaterial 
substance.  The  whole  train  of  argument  illustrated  in  the 
preceding  pages,  affords,  I  presume,  satisfactory  evidence, 
that  the  Creator  will  never  annihilate  the  human  soul,  but 
has  destined  it  to  remain  in  the  vigorous  exercise  of  its 
noble  faculties  to  all  eternity. 

Hence  it  follows,  that  it  is  a  matter  of  trivial  importance, 
when  considering  the  arguments  which  prove  our  immortal 
destiny,  whether  we  view  the  soul  as  a  material  or  as  an  im¬ 
material  substance.  Suppose  I  were  to  yield  to  the  sceptic, 
for  a  moment,  the  position,  “  that  the  soul  is  a  material  sub¬ 
stance,  and  cannot  exist  but  in  connexion  with  a  material 
frame,”  what  would  he  gain  by  the  concession  ?  It  would 
not  subtract  a  single  atom  from  the  weight  of  evidence 
which  has  already  been  brought  forward  to  prove  the  im¬ 
mortality  of  man.  For,  if  we  can  prove  that  God  has  will- 


PROOFS  FROM  THE  LIGHT  OF  NATURE. 


107 


ed  the  immortality  of  the  soul,  and,  consequently,  has  de¬ 
termined  to  interpose  his  almighty  power,  in  order  to  sup¬ 
port  it#s  faculties  throughout  an  eternal  existence,  in  vam 
shall  he  have  proved  that  it  is  not  immortal  in  its  nature. 
He  who  created  the  human  soul  and  endued  it  with  so  many 
noble  faculties,  can  continue  its  existence,  through  an  un 
limited  extent  of  duration,  in  a  thousand  modes  incompre¬ 
hensible  to  us.  If  a  material  system  of  organical  powers 
be  necessary  for  the  exercise  of  its  energies,  he  can  either 
clothe  it  with  a  fine  ethereal  vehicle,  at  the  moment  its  pre¬ 
sent  tenement  is  dissolved,  or  connect  it,  in  another  region 
of  the  universe,  with  a  corporeal  frame  of  more  exquisite 
workmanship,  analogous  to  that  which  it  now  animates. 
For  any  thing  we  know  to  the  contrary,  there  may  be  some 
line  material  system,  with  which  it  is  essentially  connected, 
and  which  goes  off  with  it  at  death,  and  serves  as  a  medium 
through  which  it  may  hold  a  direct  communication  with  the 
visible  universe.  Even  although  its  consciousness  ot  ex¬ 
istence  were  to  be  suspended  for  thousands  of  years,  its 
Creator  can  afterwards  invest  it  with  a  new  organical  frame, 
suited  to  the  expansive  sphere  of  action  to  which  it  is  des¬ 
tined  ;  and  the  intervening  period  of  its  repose  may  be  made 
to  appear  no  longer  than  the  lapse  of  a  few  moments.  In 
short,  if  God  has  sustained  the  material  universe  hitherto, 
and  will,  in  all  probability,  continue  it  for  ever  in  existence, 
so  that  not  a  single  atom  now  existing,  shall  at  any  future 
period  be  annihilated — the  same  Power  and  Intelligence 
can,  with  equal  ease,  support  the  thinking  principle  in  man, 
whatever  may  be  its  nature  or  substance,  and  however  varied 
the  transformations  through  which  it  may  pass.  If  the  Crea¬ 
tor  is  both  able  and  willing  to  perpetuate  the  existence  of 
the  rational  spirit  through  an  endless  duration,  and  if  his 
wisdom,  benevolence,  and  rectitude  require  that  this  object 
should  be  accomplished,  all  difficulties  arising  from  its  na- 
j  ture  or  the  mode  of  its  subsistence,  must  at  once  evanish. 
The  preceding  arguments  in  support  of  a  future  state,  are, 
therefore,  equally  conclusive,  whether  we  consider  the  sold 
as  a  pure  immaterial  substance,  or  as  only  a  peculiar  modi¬ 
fication  of  matter;  so  that  the  sceptic  who  adopts  the  ab¬ 
surd  idea  of  the  materiality  of  mind,  cannot,  even  on  this 
ground,  invalidate  the  truth  of  man’s  eternal  destination. 


108 


THE  PHILOSOTHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


CHAPTER  II. 

PROOFS  QE  A  FUTURE  STATE  FROM  DIVINE  REVELATION. 

The  evidences  of  a  future  state,  which  we  have  endea 
voured,  in  the  preceding  pages,  to  investigate  on  the  prin¬ 
ciples  of  human  reason,  are  amply  confirmed  and  illustrated 
in  the  Revelation  contained  in  the  Sacred  Scriptures.  It  is 
one  of  the  distinguishing  characteristics  of  that  revelation, 
that  in  every  important  point,  it  harmonizes  with  the  deduc¬ 
tions  of  sound  reason,  and  the  principles  of  common  sense. 
This  was  naturally  to  be  presumed;  since  God  is  the  author 
both  of  the  reasoning  faculty,  and  of  the  declarations  con¬ 
tained  in  the  volume  of  inspiration;  and  this  consideration 
forms  a  strong  presumptive  argument  in  support  of  the  Di¬ 
vine  authority  of  the  Scriptures,  and  should  excite  11s  to  re¬ 
ceive,  with  cordial  veneration  and  esteem,  a  revelation 
which  confirms  the  law  of  nature,  and  is  congenial  to  the 
sentiments  of  the  wisest  and  the  best  of  mankind  in  all  ages. 
If  any  serious  inquirer,  who  had  entertained  doubts  on  this 
subject,  has  been  led  to  a  conviction  of  the  reality  of  his 
immortal  destiny,  by  such  arguments  as  the  preceding,  he 
will  naturally  resort  to  the  Sacred  Records  for  more  full 
information  on  this  important  point;  and  I  should  have  no 
fear  of  any  one  remaining  long  an  enemy  of  Revelation, 
when  once  a  powerful  conviction  of  a  future  state  has  been 
deeply  impressed  on  his  mind.  If  a  man  is  fully  convinced 
that  he  is  standing  every  moment  on  the  verge  of  an  eternal 
state,  he  cannot  but  feel  anxious  to  acquire  the  most  correct 
information  that  can  be  obtained  respecting  that  world 
which  is  to  constitute  his  everlasting  abode;  and  if  he  is  al¬ 
together  careless  and  insensible  in  this  respect,  it  is  quite 
clear,  that  he  has  no  thorough  conviction  of  the  realities  of 
a  life  to  come. 

The  Christian  Revelation  has  “brought  life  and  immor¬ 
tality  to  light,”  not  so  much  on  account  of  the  express  as¬ 
surance  it  gives  of  the  reality  of  a  future  world,  but  chiefly, 
as  it  clearly  exhibits  the  nature  and  the  employments  of 
that  state,  its  endless  duration,  the  ground  on  which  we  can 
expect  happiness  in  it,  and  the  dispositions  and  virtues 
which  qualify  us  for  relishing  its  exercises  and  enjoying  its 
felicities ;  and  particularly,  as  it  opens  to  our  view  the  glo¬ 
rious  scene  of  a  “resurrection  from  the  dead,"  and  the  re¬ 
union  of  soul  and  body  in  the  mansions  of  bliss. 


PROOFS  FROM  DIVINE  REVELATION. 


109 


In  illustrating  this  topic,  it  would  be  quite  unnecessary  to 
enter  into  any  lengthened  details.  When  the  Divine  au 
thority  of  the*  Scriptures  is  recognised,  a  single  proposi¬ 
tion  or  assertion,  when  it  is  clear  and  express,  is  sufficient 
to  determine  tne  reality  of  any  fact,  or  the  truth  ot  any 
doctrine;  and,  therefore,  1  shall  do  little  more  than  bring 
forward  a  few  passages  bearing  on  the  point  under  conside- 
tion,  and  intersperse  some  occasional  remarks.  As  some 
have  called  in  question  the  position,  “that  the  doctrine  o' 
a  future  state  was  known  to  the  Jews,”  I  shall,  in  the  first 
plaoe,  bring  forward  a  few  passages  and  considerations  to 
show  that  the  doctrine  of  immortality  was  recognised 
under  the  Jewish  as  well  as  under  the  Christian  dispensa- 
tion. 

As  the  belief  of  a  future  state  lies  at  the  very  foundation 
of  religion,  it  is  impossible  to  suppose,  that  a  people  whom 
the  Almighty  had  chosen  to  be  his  worshippers,  and  the 
depositories  of  his  revealed  will,  should  have  remained 
ignorant  of  this  interesting  and  fundamental  truth,  and  have 
had  their  views  confined  solely  to  the  fleeting  scenes  of  the 
present  world.  “  Faith,”  says  Paul,  in  his  Epistle  to  the 
Hebrews,  “  is  the  confident  expectation  of  things  hoped  lor. 
and  the  conviction  of  things  not  seen.”*  It  includes  a 
belief  in  the  existence  of  God,  and  of  the  rewards  of  a  lile 
to  come ;  for,  says  the  same  apostle,  “  He  that  cometh  to 
God  must  believe  that  he  is,  and  that  he  is  the  rewarder  of 
them  that  diligently  seek  him.”  Having  stated  these  pnn 
ciples,  he  proceeds  to  show,  that  the  ancient  patriarchs  were 
animated  in  all  their  services  by  their  conviction  of  the 
realities  of  a  future  and  invisible  world.  With  respect  to 
Abraham  he  informs  us,  that  “he  expected  a  city  which 
had  foundations,  whose  builder  and  maker  is  God.”  He 
obtained  no  such  city  in  the  earthly  Canaan  ;  and  therefore 
we  must  necessarily  suppose,  that  his  views  were  directed 
to  mansions  of  perpetuity  beyond  the  confines  of  the  present 
world.  With  respect  to  Moses,  he  says,  that  under  ah  nis 
persecutions  and  afflictions,  “  he  endured  as  seeing  Him  who 
is  invisible ;  for  he  had  a  respect  to  the  recompense  of 
reward.”  That  rewards  id  not  consist  in  temporal  gran"'  ur, 
otherwise,  he  might  have  enjoyed  it  in  much  more  splenuour 
and  security  in  Egypt,  ?s  the  son  of  Pharaoh’s  damjlwev  uor 
did  it  consist  in  the  possession  of  Canaan,  for  he  was  not 


*  Doddridge’s  translation  of  He’u  xi.  i. 

10 


110 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


permitted  to  enter  into  that  goodly  land.  It  must,  therefore, 
have  been  the  celestial  inheritance  to  which  the  eye  of  his 
faith  looked  forward,  as  the  object  of  his  joyful  anticipation. 
With  regard  to  all  the  other  patriarchs  whose  names  stand 
high  on  the  records  of  the  Old  Testament  Church,  he  de¬ 
clares,  that  “  they  confessed  that  they  were  strangers  and 
pilgrims  on  earth,”  that  “  they  declared  plainly  that  they 
sought  a  better  country,  that  is,  an  heavenly  and  that  those 
who  “  were  tortured”  to  induce  them  to  renounce  their 
religion,  endured  their  sufferings  with  invincible  fortitude, 
“notaccepting  deliverence”  when  it  was  offered  them,  “  that 
they  might  obtain  a  better  resurrection .” 

In  accordance  with  these  declarations,  the  prophets,  in 
many  parts  of  their  writings,  speak  decisively  of  their  expec¬ 
tations  of  a  future  life,  and  of  the  consolation  the  prospect 
of  it  afforded  them,  under  their  sufferings.  “As  lor  me,” 
says  the  Psalmist,  “  I  shall  behold  thy  face  in  righteousness ; 

I  shall  be  satisfied  when  I  awake  with  thy  likeness.”  “  My 
flesh  shall  rest  in  hope;  for  thou  wilt  not  leave  my  soul  in 
the  grave.  Thou  wilt  show  me  the  path  of  life :  in  thy 
presence  is  fulness  of  joy  ;  at  thy  right  hand  are  pleasures 
for  evermore.”  “  Yea,  though  I  walk  through  the  valley  of 
the  shadow  of  death,  I  will  fear  no  evil ;  for  thou  art  with 
me.  Surely  goodness  and  mercy  will  follow  me  all  the 
days  of  my  life,  and,  I  shall  dwell  in  the  house  of  the  Lord 
for  ever.”  “  God  will  redeem  my  soul  from  the  grave;  for 
he  will  receive  me.”  “  Whom  have  I  in  heaven  but  thee  ? 
and  there  is  none  upon  earth  that  I  desire  besides  thee. 
Thou  wilt  guide  me  with  thy  counsel,  and  afterward  receive 
me  to  glory.  My  flesh  and  my  heart  shall  fail;  but  God 
is  the  strength  of  my  heart  and  my  portion  for  ever.” — No-  ' 
thing  can  be  more  clear  and  express  than  such  declarations. 
If  the  Psalmist  had  no  belief  in  a  future  state,  and  no  hopes 
of  enjoying  its  felicities,  after  the  termination  of  his  earthly 
pilgrimage,  his  language  is  absolutely  without  meaning. 
What  rational  interpretation  can  be  given  to  the  expressions 
of  “  dwelling  in  the  house  of  God  for  ever,”  after  his  days 
on  earth  are  numbered — of  “  Jehovah  being  his  everlasting 
portion,”  after  his  heart  had  ceased  to  beat — and  of  his 
being  “  redeemed  from  the  grave,”  and  put  in  possession  of 
“fulness  of  joy”  and  “  everlasting  pleasures,”— if  his  views 
were  confined  to  the  narrow  limits  of  turn',  and  the  bounda¬ 
ries  of  the  earthly  Canaan  ?  Such  expressions  would  be  a 


PROOFS  FROM  DIVINE  REVELATION. 


Ill 


species  of  bombast  and  hyperbole  altogether  inconsistent 
with  the  dignity  and  veracity  of  an  inspired  writer.1 

Job,  that  illustrious  example  of  patience  under  affliction, 
consoled  his  spirit  in  the  midst  of  adversity  by  the  hopes 
he  entertained  of  a  blessed  immortality.  “I  know,”  says 
he,  “that  my  Redeemer  liveth,  and  that  he  shall  stand  at 
the  latter  day  upon  the  earth :  and,  after  I  shall  awake, 
though  this  body  shall  be  destroyed,  yet  out  of  my  flesh 
shall0 1  see  God.”— In  various  other  passages  of  the  pro¬ 
phets,  not  only  a  future  state,  but  a  resurrection  from  the 
grave  and  the  solemnities  of  a  day  of  judgment  are  plainly 
intimated.  “Thy  dead  men  shall  live,  together  with  my 
dead  body  shall  they  arise.  Awake  and  sing,  ye  that  dwell 
in  dust;  for  thy  dew  is  as  the  dew  of  herbs,  and  the  earth 
shall  cast  out  the  dead.”  “Rejoice,  O  young  man,  in  thy 
youth,  and  walk  in  the  ways  of  thy  heart,  and  in  the  sight 
of  thine  eyes:  but  know  thou,  that  for  all  these  things  God 
will  bring  thee  into  judgment.”  “For  God  shall  bring 
every  work  into  judgment,  with  every  secret  thing,  whether 
it  be  good,  or  whether  it  be  evil.”  “  Many  of  them  that 
sleep  in  the  dust  of  the  earth  shall  awake,  some  to  ever¬ 
lasting  life,  and  some  to  shame  and  everlasting  contempt. 
And  they  that  be  wise  shall  shine  as  the  brightness  of  the 
firmament;  and  they  that  turn  many  to  righteousness  as  the 
stars  for  ever  and  ever.” 

One  reason,  among  others,  why  the  doctrine  of  a  future 
state  is  not  frequently  adverted  to,  and  treated  in  detail,  in 
the  writings  of  the  Old  Testament,  undoubtedly  is,  that  it 
was  a  truth  so  well  understood,  so  generally  recognised,  and 
so  essential  to  the  very  idea  of  religion,  that  it  would  have 
been  superfluous  to  have  dwelt  upon  it  in  detail,  or  to  have 
brought  it  forward  as  a  new  discovery. — This  doctrine  is 
implied  in  the  phraseology  of  the  Old  Testament,  in  many 
cases  where  there  is  no  direct  reference  to  a  future  world, 
as  in  such  passages  as  the  following:  “I  am  the  God  of  thy 
father,  the  God  of  Abraham,  the  God  of  Isaac,  and  the  God 
of  Jacob:”  Exod.  iii.6.  Our  Saviour  has  taught  us  to  con¬ 
sider  this  and  similar  passages  as  embodying  the  doctrine  of 
a  future  life.  “  For  God  is  not  the  God  of  the  dead,  but 
of  the  living.”  If  the  holy  patriarchs  whose  names  are 
here  commemorated  with  so  much  honour,  were  reduced 
to  the  condition  of  the  clods  of  the  valley,  and  if  their  intel¬ 
lectual  part  were  not  in  existence,  Jehovah  would  never 
own  the  high  relation  of  a  God  to  those  whom  he  has  final- 


113 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 

ly  abandoned,  and  suffered  to  sink  into  non-existence.  Con¬ 
sequently,  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob  were  living  and 
intelligent  beings,  in  another  state,  when  this  declaration 

was  made  to  Moses  at  the  burning  bush _ The  phrase, 

“He  was  gathered  to  his  people,”  implies  a  similar  senti¬ 
ment.  In  ben.  xxv.  it  is  said  “  Abraham  gave  up  the  o-host, 
and  was  gathered  to  his  people”  This  expression  ?s  not 
to  be  viewed  as  importing  that  he  was  buried  with  his 
lathers;  for  the  fathers  of  Abraham  were  buried  several 
hundreds  of  miles  from  the  cave  of  Machpelah,  in  which 
A  bra.  mm's  mortal  remains  were  deposited, — some  of  them 
m  the  land  of  Chaldea,  and  some  of  them  in  the  country  ol' 
Mesopotamia,  which  lay  at  a  considerable  distance  from  the 
land  of  Canaan.  The  true  meaning  must  therefore  be, 
tout  he  was  “  gathered”  to  the  assembly  of  the  righteous, 
to  the  blessed  society  of  those  congenial  spirits,  eminent  for 
tii ci r  piety,  who  had  passed  before  him  into  the  invisible 
world..  Hence,  says  the  Psalmist,  “  Gather  not  my  soul 
with  sinners..  Hence,  says  Job,  when  describing  the  mise¬ 
ries  ol  the  wicked,  “  Phe  rich  man  shall  lie  down  ”  in  the 
grave,  “  but  he  snail  not  he  gathered and  the  prophet,  when 
personating  the  Messiah,  declares,  “  Though  Israel  be  not 
gathered ,  yet  shall  I  be  glorious  in  the  eyes  of  Jehovah.” 

These  remarks  may  suffice  to  show,  that  the  doctrine  of 
a  future  state  was  known,  and  generally  recognised,  by  the 
venerable  patriarchs  and  other  illustrious  characters  that 
flourished  under  the  Jewish  dispensation. 

That  this  doctrine  is  exhibited  in  the  clearest  light  in  the 
Christian  Revelation,  has  never  been  disputed,  by  any  class 
of  religionists,  nor  even  by  infidels  themselves.  In  this 
revelation,  however,  the  doctrine  of  immortality  is  not  at¬ 
tempted  to  be  proved  by  any  laboured  arguments,  or  su¬ 
pernatural  evidences,  nor  is  it  brought  forward  as  a  new 
discovery.  It  is  evidently  taken  for  granted,  and  incident¬ 
ally  interwoven  through  all  the  discourses  of  our  Saviour 
and  his  Apostles,  as  a  truth  which  lies  at  the  foundation  of 
religion,  and  which  never  ought  for  a  moment  to  be  called 
in  question.  In  elucidating  this  topic,  it  will  be  quite  suf¬ 
ficient  simply  to  quote  a  few  passages  from  the  New  Tcs.a 
ment  writers. 

Paul,  when  looking  forward  to  the  dissolution  or  his 
mortal  frame,  declares,  in  his  own  name,  and  in  the  name  of 
all  Christians, — “  Our  light  affliction,  which  is  but  for  a 
moment,  workefh  out  for  us  a  far  more  exceeding  and  eter 


PROOX'S  FROM  DIVINE  REVELATION. 


113 


nal  weight  of  glory ;  while  we  aim  riot  at  the  things  which 
are  visible,  but  at  those  which  are  invisible  :  for  the  things 
which  are  visible  are  temporary,  but  those  which  are  invi¬ 
sible  are  eternal.  For  we  know,  that  if  this  earthly  house 
of  our  tabernacle  were  dissolved,  we  have  a  building  of  God, 
an  house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens.” 
When  the  time  of  his  departure  from  the  body  was  at  hand, 
he  declared,  “  I  have  fought  the  good  fight,  I  have  finished 
my  course,  I  have  kept  the  faith ;  henceforth  there  is  laid 
up  for  me  a  crown  of  righteousness,  which  the  righteous 
Judge  shall  give  me  at  that  day ;  and  not  to  me  only,  but  to 
all  them  that  love  his  appearing.”  The  apostle  Peter  de¬ 
clares,  that  believers  “are  regenerated  to  the  lively  hope  of 
an  inheritance  incorruptible,  undefiled,  and  that  fadeth  not 
away,  reserved  in  heaven  for  them.”  “  When  the  chief 
Shepherd  shall  appear,  we  shall  receive  a  crown  of  glory, 
which  fadeth  not  away.”  Our  Saviour  declares,  in  reference 
to  his  servants,  “  I  give  unto  them  eternal  life ,  and  they 
shall  never  perish.”  “In  my  Father’s  house  are  many  man¬ 
sions  :  if  it  were  not  so  I  would  have  told  yon.  I  go  to 
prepare  a  place  for  you.  And  I  will  come  again,  and  re¬ 
ceive  you  to  myself,  that  where  I  am  there  you  may  be 
also.”  And  again,  “Many  shall  come  from  the  east  and 
from  the  west,  and  shall  sit  down  with  Abraham,  and  Isaac, 
and  Jacob,  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven.”  “  Then  shall  the 
righteous  shine  forth  as  the  sun  in  the  kingdom  of  their 
Father.” 

While  these  and  similar  passages  clearly  demonstrate  the 
certainty  of  an  eternal  world,  and  the  future  happiness  of 
the  righteous — the  apostles  and  evangelists  are  equally  ex¬ 
plicit  in  asserting  the  future  misery  of  the  wicked.  “The 
unrighteous  shall  not  inherit  the  kingdom  of  God,”  but 
“shall  go  away  into  everlasting  punishment.”  “The  Lord 
Jesus  shall  be  revealed  from  heaven,  with  his  mighty  angels, 
in  flaming  fire,  taking  vengeance  on  them  that  know  not 
God,  arid  who  obey  not  the  gospel :  who  shall  be  punished 
with  everlasting  destruction  from  the  presence  of  the  Lord, 
and  from  the  glory  of  his  power.”  “  At  the  end  of  the 
world,  the  angels  shall  come  forth  and  sever  the  wicked  from 
among  the  just,  and  shall  cast  them  into  a  furnace  of  fire, 
where  shall  be  weeping  and  gnashing  of  teeth.”  “The 
fearful,  and  unbelieving,  and  murderers,  and  whoremongers, 
and  sorcerers,  and  idolaters,  and  all  liars,  shall  have  their 
part  in  the  lake  which  burneth  with  fire  and  brimstone. 

10# 


1  i4 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


There  shall  in  no  wise  enter  into  the  heavenly  Jerusalem 
any  thing  that  defileth,  neither  whatsoever  worketh  abomi¬ 
nation,  or  maketh  a  lie.” 

The  way  by  which  happiness  in  the  future  world  maybe 
obtained  is  also  clearly  exhibited.  “Eternal  life  is  the  gift 
of  God,  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.”  “For  God  so 
loted  the  world,  that  he  gave  his  only  begotten  Son,  that 
whosoever  believeth  in  him  should  not  perish  but  have  ever¬ 
lasting  life.”  “This  is  the  record,  that  God  hath  given  to 
us  eternal  life,  and  this  life  is  in  his  Son.”  “The  God  of 
all  grace  hath  called  us  unto  his  eternal  glory  by  Christ  Je¬ 
sus.”  The  dispositions  of  those  on  whom  this  happiness 
will  be  conferred,  and  the  train  of  action  which  prepares  us 
for  the  enjoyment  of  eternal  bliss,  arc  likewise  distinctly 
described.  “Whatsoever  a  man  soweth,  that  shall  he  also 
reap.  "  He  that  soweth  to  the  flesh,  shall  of  the  flesh  reap 
corruption  ;  but  he  that  soweth  to  the  spirit,  shall  of  the 
spirit  reap  life  everlasting.”  “To  them  who,  by  patient 
continuance  in  well-doing,  seek  for  glory,  honour,  and  im¬ 
mortality,  God  will  recompense  eternal  life.”  “The  pure 
in  heart  shall  see  God.”  “He  that  doth  the  will  of  God  ahid- 
eih  for  ever."  “  Him  that  overcometh  will  I  make  a  pillar 
in  the  temple  of  my  God,  and  he  shall  go  no  more  out.” 
“  Blessed  are  they  that  do  his  commandments,  that  they  may 
have  a  right  to  the  tree  of  life,  and  may  enter  through  the 
gates  into  the  city.” 

The  nature  of  the  heavenly  felicity,  and  the  employments 
of  the  future  world,  are  likewise  incidentally  stated  and 
illustrated.  The  foundation  of  happiness  in  that  state  is 
declared  to  consist  in  perfect  freedom  from  moral  impurity, 
and  in  the  attainment  of  moral  perfection.  “No  one  who 
worketh  abomination  can  enter  the  gates  of  the  New  Jeru¬ 
salem.”  “Christ  Jesus  gave  himself  for  the  church,  that 
he  might  sanctify  and  cleanse  it,  and  that  he  might  present 
it  to  himself  a  glorious  church,  holy,  and  without  blemish.” 
The  honour  which  awaits  the  faithful,  in  the  heavenly  world, 
is  designated  “a  crown  of  righteousness."  The  inheritance 
to  which  they  are  destined  is  declared  to  be  “undefiled” 
with  moral  pollution;  and  it  is  “an  inheritance  among  them 
that  are  sanctified."  “When  Christ,  who  is  our  life,  shall 
appear,”  says  the  Apostle  John,  “ice  shall  he  like  him,' 
adorneo  with  all  the  beauties  of  holiness  which  lie  display¬ 
ed  on  earth  as  our  pattern  and  exemplar. — The  employ?nents 
of  that  world  are  represented  as  consisting  in  adoration  of 


PROOFS  FROM  PIVINE  REVELATION. 


115 


the  Creator  of  the  universe,  in  the  celebration  of  his  praises, 
in  the  contemplation  of  his  works,  and  in  those  active  servi¬ 
ces,  flowing  from  the  purest  love,  which  have  a  tendency  to 
promote  the  harmony  and  felicity  of  the  intelligent  crea¬ 
tion.  “I  beheld,”  said  John,  when  a  vision  of  the  future 
world  was  presented  to  his  view,  “and,  lo,  a  great  multi¬ 
tude,  which  no  man  could  number,  of  all  nations,  and 
kindreds,  and  people,  and  tongues,  stood  before  the  throne, 
clothed  in  white  robe3,  crying  with  a  loud  voice,  Salvation 
to  our  God  that  sitteth  upon  the  throne,  and  unto  the  Lamb. 
Blessing,  and  glory,  and  wisdom,  and  thanksgiving,  and 
honour,  and  power,  be  ascribed  to  our  God  for  ever  and 
ever.”  That  the  contemplation  of  the  works  of  God  is 
one  leading  part  of  the  exercises  of  the  heavenly  inhabi 
tants,  appears,  from  the  scene  presented  to  the  same  Apos 
tie,  in  another  vision,  where  the  celestial  choir  are  repre 
seated  as  falling  down  before  Him  that  sat  on  the  throne, 
and  saying,  “Thou  art  worthy,  O  Lord,  to  receive  glory, 
and  honour,  and  power;  for  thou  hast  created  all  things, 
and  for  thy  pleasure  they  are,  and  were  created.”  Such 
sublime  adorations  and  ascriptions  of  praise,  are  the  natural 
results  of  their  profound  investigations  of  the  wonderful 
works  of  God.  In  accordance  with  the  exercises  of  these 
holy  intelligences,  another  chorus  of  the  celestial  inhabi¬ 
tants  is  exhibited  as  sinking  the  song  of  Moses  the  servant 
of  God,  and  the  song  of  the  Lamb,  saying,  “  Great  and 
marvellous  are  thy  works,  Lord  God  Almighty,  just  and  true 
are  thy  ways,  thou  King  of  saints.” 

The  resurrection  of  the  body  to  an  immortal  life,  is  also 
declared,  in  the  plainest  and  most  decisive  language.  This 
is  one  of  the  peculiar  discoveries  of  Revelation ;  for,  al¬ 
though  the  ancient  sages  of  the  Heathen  world  generally 
admitted  the  immortality  of  the  soul,  they  seem  never  to 
have  formed  the  most  distant  conception,  that  the  bodies  of 
men,  after  putrifying  in  the  grave,  would  ever  be  re-ani¬ 
mated  ;  and  hence,  when  Paul  declared  this  doctrine  to  the 
Athenian  philosophers,  he  was  pronounced  to  be  a  babbler. 
This  sublime  and  consoling  truth,  however,  is  put  beyond 
all  doubt  by  our  Saviour  and  his  apostles. — “The  hour  is 
coming,”  says  Jesus,”  when  all  that  are  in  the  grave  shall 
hear  the  voice  of  the  Son  of  God,  and  shall  come  forth: 
they  that  have  done  good,  to  the  resurrection  of  life  ;  and 
they  that  have  done  evil,  to  the  resurrection  of  condemna¬ 
tion.”  “I  am  the  resurrection  and  the  life:  he  that  believ- 


lirt 


TIIE  rillLOSOPHY  OF  a  future  state. 


eth  in  me,  though  he  were  dead,  yet  shall  he  lire.”  “  Whv 
should  it  be  thought  a  thing  incredible  that  God  should  raise 
the  aead  We  look  for  the  Saviour,  who  shall  change 
our  vile  body,  that  it  may  be  fashioned  like  unto  his  glori- 
ous  body,  according  to  the  energyby  which  he  is  able  even 
to  subdue  all  things  to  himself.”  “We  shall  all  be  chanir- 
ed,m  a  moment,  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye,  at  the  last 
u-ump;  for  the  trumpet  shall  sound,  and  the  dead  shall  be 
raised  incorruptible,  and  we  shall  be  changed.” — The  nature 
ot  tins  change,  and  the  qualities  of  the  resurrection-body, 
are  likewise  particularly  described  by  Paul  in  the  fifteenth 
chapter  of  the  first  epistle  to  the  Corinthians.  “  It  is 
sown  or  committed  to  the  grave“  in  corruption;  it  is 
laised  m  mcorruption;'— liable  no  more  to  decay,  disease, 
am.  death,  but  immortal  as  its  Creator.— “It  is"  raised  in 
Fower  -endued  with  strength  and  vigour  incapable  of  be¬ 
ing  weakened  or  exhausted,  and  fitted  to  accompany  the 
m?s‘  vigorous  activities— “It  is  raised  in 
b  ,  y  destined  to  flourish  in  immortal  youth  and  beauty, 

’  "!  a  splendour  similar  to  that  which  appeared 
o  ,  the  body  of  Christ  when  “his  face  did  shine  ns  ^ 

'US  raiment  became  white  and  glistening.” — “It  is  rais 
ed  a  spiritual  body”— refined  to  the  highest  pitch  of  which 
matter  is  susceptible,  capable  of  the  most  vigorous  exer¬ 
tions  and  of  the  swiftest  movements,  endued  with  organs  of 

fhr  seP  °if  l  m°re  exquisite  and  s"bhme  nature  than 
those  with  which  it  is  now  furnished,  and  fitted  to  act  as  a 

suitable  vehicle  for  the  soul  in  all  its  celestial  services  and 
sublime  investigations. 

ChfwLV.v!^  s“mmary,of  the  disclosures  which  the 
'  “tld  ,  V relation  has  made  respecting  the  eternal  desti- 

”y.°f  ?dnklnd~a  subject  of  infinite  importance  to  every 
ational  bemg— a  subject  of  ineffable  sublimity  and  vrandeur 
which  throws  into  the  shade  the  most  important® 
tions,  and  the  most  splendid  pageantry  of  this  sublunary 
scene-a  subject  which  should  be  interwoven  with  all  oul 
plans,  pursuits,  and  social  intercourses,  and  which  ought 

LVn\I°r  f  m°menit  ibG  banished  from  our  thoughts— 
f  remark  oMwoCO"ClUde  th‘S  deparll““l  "V  «4«t  with 

0,1  Practlcal  influence  which  the  doctrine  of  a  future 
s.ate  ought  to  have  upon  our  affections  and  conduct . 

When  we  look  around  us  on  the  busy  scene  of  human 
life,  and  especially  when  we  contemplate  the  bustle  and 


PROOFS  FROM  LIVINE  REVELATION. 


117 


pageantry  which  appear  in  a  populous  city,  we  can  scarcely 
help  concluding,  that  the  great  majority  of  human  beings 
that  pass  in  review  before  us,  are  acting  as  if  the  present 
world  were  their  everlasting  abode,  and  as  if  they  had  no 
relation  to  an  invisible  state  of  existence.  To  indulge  in 
sensual  gratifications,  to  acquire  power,  wealth,  and  fame, 
to  gratify  vanity,  ambition,  and  pride,  to  amuse  themselves 
with  pictures  of  fancy,  with  fantastic  exhibitions,  theatrical 
scenes,  and  vain  shows,  and  to  endeavour  to  banish  every 
thought  of  death  and  eternity  from  the  mind,  appear  to  be 
in  their  view  the  great  and  ultimate  ends  of  existence.  This 
is  the  case,  not  merely  of  those  who  openly  avow  them¬ 
selves  “  men  of  the  world,”  and  call  in  question  the  reality 
of  a  future  existence  ;  but  also  of  thousands  who  regularly 
frequent  our  worshipping  assemblies,  and  profess  their  belief 
in  the  realities  of  an  eternal  state.  They  listen  to  the  doc¬ 
trines  of  eternal  life,  and  of  future  punishment,  without  at¬ 
tempting  to  question  either  their  reality  or  their  importance, 
but  as  soon  as  they  retire  from  “  the  place  of  the  holy,”  and 
mingle  in  the  social  circle,  and  the  bustle  of  business,  every 
impression  of  invisible  realities  evanishes  from  their  minds, 
as  if  it  had  been  merely  a  dream  or  a  vision  of  the  night. 
To  cultivate  the  intellectual  faculties,  to  aspire  after  moral 
excellence,  to  devotp  the  active  powers  to  the  glory  of  the 
Creator,  and  the  benefit  of  mankind;  to  live  as  strangers 
and  pilgrims  upon  earth,  to  consider  the  glories  of  this 
world  as  a  transient  scene  that  will  soon  pass  away, 
anu  to  keep  the  eye  constantly  fixed  on  the  realities  of  an 
immortal  life — are  characteristics  of  only  a  comparatively 
small  nnmber  of  individuals  scattered  amidst  the  swarming 
population  around  us,  who  are  frequently  regarded  by  their 
fellows  as  a  mean-spirited  and  ignoble  race  of  beings. 
Though  death  is  making  daily  havoc  around  them,  though 
their  friends  and  relatives  are,  year  after  year,  dropping 
into  the  grave,  though  poets  and  orators,  princes  and  phi¬ 
losophers,  statesmen  and  stage-players,  are  continually  dis¬ 
appearing  from  the  living  world;  though  sickness  and  dis¬ 
ease  are  raging  around  and  laying  their  victims  of  every  age 
prostrate  in  the  dust,  and  though  they  frequently  walk  over 
the  solemn  recesses  of  the  burying-ground,  and  tread  upon 
the  ashes  of  “  the  mighty  man,  and  the  man  of  war,  the 
judge  and  the  ancient,  the  cunning  artificer,  and  the  elo¬ 
quent  orator,” — yet  they  prosecute  the  path  of  dissipation 
and  vanity  with  as  much  keenness  and  resolution,  as  if 


ns 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


every  thing  around  them  were  unchangeable,  and  as  if  their 
present  enjoyments  were  to  last  for  ever. 

Ii  this  representation  be  founded  on  fact,  we  may  assur* 
ed!y  conclude,  that  the  great  bulk  of  mankind  have  no 
xed  belief  of  the  reality  oi  a  future  world,  and  that  more 
than  the  one-half  of  those  who  profess  an  attachment  to 
religion,  are  as  little  influenced  in  their  general  conduct  by 
this  solemn  consideration,  as  if  it  were  a  matter  of  mere' 
fancy  or  of  “doubtful  disputation.”  It  is  somewhat 
strange,  and  even  paradoxical,  that,  amidst  the  never-ceas¬ 
ing  changes  which  are  taking  place  among  the  living  beings 
around  us,  men  should  so  seldom  look  beyond  the  grave 
to  which  they  are  all  advancing,  and  so  seldom  make  inquiries 
into  the  certainty  and  the  nature  of  that  state  into  which 
the  tide  of  time  has  carried  all  the  former  generations  of 
mankind.  If  a  young  man  were  made  fully  assured  that,  at 
the  end  ol  two  years,  he  should  obtain  the  sovereignty  of  a  fer¬ 
tile  island  in  the  Indian  Ocean,  where  he  should  enjoy 
every  earthly  pleasure  his  heart  could  desire,— his  soul 
would  naturally  bound  at  the  prospect,  he  would  search 
his  maps  to  ascertain  the  precise  position  of  his  future  resi¬ 
dence,  he  would  make  inquiries  respecting  it  at  those  tra¬ 
vellers  who  had  either  visited  the  spot  or  passed  near  its 
confines,  he  would  peruse  with  avidity  the  descriptions 
which  geographers  have  given  of  its  natural  scenery,  its 
soil  and  climate,  its  productions  and  inhabitants;  and,  be¬ 
fore  his  departure,  he  would  be  careful  to  provide  every 
thing  that  might  be  requisite  for  ljis  future  enjoyment.  If  a 
person,  when  setting  out  on  a  journey  which  he  was  obliged  to 
undertake,  were  informed  that  his  road  lay  through  a  danger¬ 
ous  territory,  where  he  should  be  exposed  on  the  one 
hand,  to  the  risk  of  falling  headlong  into  unfathomable 
gu  phs,  and,  on  the  other,  to  the  attacks  of  merciless  sava¬ 
ges,— he  would  walk  with  caution,  he  would  look  around 
him  at  every  step,  and  he  would  welcome  with  gratitude 
any  friendly  guide  that  would -direct  his  steps  to  the  place 
of  his  destination.  But,  in  relation  to  a  future  and  invisi¬ 
ble  world,  there  exist,  in  the  minds  of  the  bulk  of  man¬ 
kind,  a  most  unaccountable  apathy  and  indifference;  and 
not  only  an  indifference,  but,  in  many  instances,  a  deter¬ 
mined  resolution  not  to  listen  to  any  thing  that  may  be  said 
respecting  it.  .  To  broach  the  subject  of  immortality,  in 
certain  convivial  circles,  would  be  considered  as  approach¬ 
ing  to  an  insult;  and  the  person  who  had  the  hardihood  to 


PROOFS  FROM  DIVINE  REVELATION. 


119 


do  so,  would  be  regarded  as  a  rude  sanctimonious  intBuder. 
How  unaccountably  foolish  and  preposterous  is  such  a  con¬ 
duct  !  especially  when  we  consider,  that  those  very  persons 
who  seem  to  be  entirely  regardless  whether  they  shall  sink 
into  the  gulph  of  annihilation,  or  into  the  regions  of  endless 
perdition,  will  pass  whole  days  and  nights  in  chagrin  and 
despair  for  the  loss  of  some  employment,  for  a  slight  affront, 
or  for  some  imaginary  reflection  on  their  reputation  and 
honour? 

Were  it  necessary  to  bring  forward  additional  proofs  that 
the  greater  part  of  mankind  have  no  belief  in  a  future  state, 
or,  which  amounts  nearly  to  the  same  thing,  that  it  has  no 
influence  whatever  on  the  general  tenor  of  their  thoughts 
and  actions — the  prominent  features  of  their  conduct  afford 
abundant  evidence  of  this  melancholy  truth.  Would  a  man, 
who  firmly  believes  that  he  is  destined  to  an  everlasting 
state,  pass  fifty  or  sixty  years  of  his  life  without  spending 
one  serious  thought  about  that  unknown  futurity  into  which 
he  is  soon  to  enter,  or  making  the  least  inquiry  respecting 
its  nature  and  employments?  Would  he  toil  from  morning 
to  night,  with  incessant  care,  to  lay  up  a  few  fleeting  trea¬ 
sures,  and  never  spend  a  single  hour  in  considering  what 
preparations  are  requisite  for  an  endless  existence?  Would 
he  spurn  at  that  book  which  has  unveiled  the  glories  and 
the  terrors  of  eternity,  and  “brought  life  and  immortality 
to  light?”  Would  he  sneer  at  the  person  who  is  inquiring 
the  way  to  a  blessed  immortality,  and  count  him  as  an  ene¬ 
my  when  he  wished  to  direct  his  attention  to  the  concerns 
of  an  unseen  world?  Can  that  man  be  supposed  to  believe 
that  a  crown  of  glory  awaits  him  in  the  heavens,  whose 
whole  soul  is  absorbed  in  the  pursuits  of  ambition,  and  who 
tramples  on  every  principle  of  truth  and  justice,  in  order  to 
gain  possession  of  a  post  of  opulence  and  honour?  Can 
those  parents  believe  that  in  heaven  there  is  “a  treasure 
which  fadeth  not,”  while  they  teach  their  children  to  con¬ 
clude,  that  the  acquisition  of  a  fortune ,  and  the  favour  of 
the  great,  are  the  grand  objects  to  which  they  should 
aspire  ?  Can  that  old  hoary-headed  votary  of  plea¬ 
sure  consider  himself  as  standing  on  the  verge  of  an  eternal 
world,  who  still  indulges  himself  in  all  the  fashionable  fol¬ 
lies  and  frivolities  of  the  age,  and  never  casts  an  eye  be¬ 
yond  the  precincts  of  the  grave?  Can  that  hard-hearted 
worlding,  who  shuts  his  ears  at  the  cry  of  the  poor  and  needy, 
and  who  grasps  his  treasures  with  eagerness  even  amidst 


120 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


the  agonies  of  dissolution — believe  that  “a  recompense  of 
reward”  awaits  the  benevolent  “at  the  resurrection  of  the 
just?”  Can  that  man  be  impressed  with  the  solemnities  of 
the  eternal  world,  who,  the  moment  after  he  has  committed 
the  remains  of  a  relative  to  the  grave,  violates  every  hu¬ 
mane  and  friendly  feeling,  and,  for  the  sake  of  a  few  paltry 
pounds  or  shillings,  deprives  the  widow  and  the  orphan  of 
every  earthly  enjoyment?  Can  that  courtly  sycophant,  who 
is  continually  hunting  after  places  and  pensions,  fawning 
upon  his  superiors,  and  whose  whole  life  is  a  continued  course 
of  treachery, adulation, and  falsehood — believe  that  “all liars 
shall  have  their  portion  in  the  lake  that  burnetii  with  fire 
and  brimstone?”  Can  that  thoughtless  debauchee  believe 
that  future  punishment  awaits  the  workers  of  iniquity,  who 
runs  from  one  scene  of  dissipation  to  another,  who  wastes 
his  time  in  follyand  extravagance,  and  whose  life  is  but  one 
continued  crime?  Or  can  we  even  suppose  that  that  clergy¬ 
man,  who  is  unremittingly  aspiring  after  preferment,  who 
is  mercilessly  fleecing  his  flock,  yet  neglecting  their  instruc¬ 
tion,  and  engaged  in  incessant  litigations  about  some  paltry 
tithes,  seriously  believes,  that  the  treasures  of  this  world 
are  unworthy  to  be  compared  with  that  “exceeding  great 
and  eternal  weight  of  glory  which  is  about  to  be  revealed” 
in  the  life  to  come?  Such  conduct  plainly  indicates,  what¬ 
ever  professions  certain  descriptions  of  these  characters 
may  make,  that  the  solemn  realities  of  the  eternal  world 
have  no  more  practical  influence  on  their  minds  than  if 
they  regarded  them  as  unsubstantial  phantoms  or  as  idle 
dreams. 

The  doctrine  of  a  future  state  is  not  a  mere  speculative 
proposition;  to  serve  as  a  subject  of  metaphysical  investiga¬ 
tion,  or  to  be  admitted  merely  to  complete  a  system  of  phi¬ 
losophical  or  theological  belief.  It  is  a  truth  of  the  highest 
practical  importance ,  which  ought  to  be  interwoven  with 
the  whole  train  of  our  thoughts  and  actions.  Yet  how 
many  are  there,  even  of  those  who  bear  the  Christian  name, 
who  are  incessantly  engaged  in  boisterous  disputes  respect¬ 
ing  the  nature  of  faith,  who  have  never  felt  the  influence  of 
that  faith  which  is  “  the  confident  expectation  of  things 
hoped  for,  and  the  conviction  of  tl  ings  which  are  not  seen,” 
and  which  realizes  to  the  mind,  as  if  actually  present,  the 
glories  of  the  invisible  world  !  Ii  we  really  believe  the  doc¬ 
trine  of  immortality,  it  will  manifest  itself  in  our  thoughts, 
affections,  and  pursuits.  It  will  lead  us  to  form  a  just  esti- 


PROOFS  FROM  DIVINE  REVELATION. 


121 


mate  of  the  value  of  all  earthly  enjoyments.  For,  in  the 
light  of  eternity,  all  the  secular  pursuits  m  which  men  no 
engage,  appear  but  as  vanity,  and  all  the  dazzling  °  ]e 
which  fascinate  their  eyes,  as  fleeting  shadows.  A  realizi  g 
view  of  an  eternal  state  dissipated  the  illusion  which  the 
eye  of  sense  throws  over  the  pageantry  and  the  sPle"do”rs 
of  this  world,  and  teaches  us  that  all  is  transitory  and  fading, 
and  that  our  most  exquisite  earthly  enjoyments  will  ere  lo  g 
be  snatched  from  our  embrace.  For,  not  a  single  mar  t 
our  sublunary  honours,  not  a  single  farthing  of  our  boaste 
treasures,  not  a  single  trace  of  our  splendid  possessions,  nor 
a  single  line  of  the  beauty  of  our  persons,  can  be  carriea 
along  with  us  to  the  regions  beyond  the  grave.  It  w. 
stimulate  us  to  set  our  affections  on  things  above,  and  to 
indulge  in  heavenly  contemplations.  “  Where  our  treasuie 
is,  there  will  our  hearts  be  also.”  Rising  superior  to  tl  e 
delights  of  sense,  and  to  the  narrow  boundaries  of  time,  w 
will  expatiate  at  large  in  those  boundless  regions  w  nc  e>e 
hath  not  seen,  and  contemplate,  in  the  light  of  reason  an 
of  revelation,  those  scenes  of  felicity  and  grandeur,  whic 
will  burst  upon  the  disembodied  spirit  when  it  has  dropped 
its  earthly  tabernacle  in  the  dust.  Like  Seneca,  when  he 
contemplated,  in  imagination,  the  magnitu  e  anc  eau  Y 
of  the  orbs  of  heaven,  we  will  look  down,  with  a  noble  in_ 
difference,  on  the  earth  as  a  scarcely  distinguishable  atom, 
and  say,  “  Is  it  to  this  little  spot  that  the  great  designs  and 
vast  desires  of  men  are  confined  ?  Is  it  for  this  there  is  sue 
disturbance  of  nations,  so  much  carnage,  and  so  many  ruin¬ 
ous  wars?  O  folly  of  deceived  men  !  to  imagine  great  king¬ 
doms  in  the  compass  of  an  atom,  to  raise  armies  to  divide 
a  point  of  earth  with  their  swords  ?  It  is  just  as  if  toe  ants 
should  divide  their  mole-hills  into  provinces,  and  conceive 
a  field  to  be  several  kingdoms,  and  fiercely  contend  to  enlarge 
their  borders,  and  celebrate  a  triumph  in  gaining  a  foo  of 
earth,  as  a  new  province  to  their  empire.”  In  the  light  ot 
heaven  all  sublunary  glories  fade  away,  and  the  mind  is 
refined  and  ennobled,  when,  with  the  eye  of  faith,  it  pene¬ 
trates  within  the  veil,  and  descries  the  splendours  of  the 

heaven  of  heavens.  ... 

Again,  if  we  believe  the  doctrine  of  immortality,  we  will 
be  careful  to  avoid  those  sins  which  would  expose  us  to 
misery  in  the  future  world,  and  to  cultivate  those  disposi¬ 
tions  and  virtues  which  will  prepare  us  for  the  enjoyment 
of  eternal  felicity.  Between  virtue  and  vice,  sin  and  holi- 

11 


122 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


ness,  there  is  an  essential  and  eternal  distinction ;  and  this 
distinction  will  be  fully  and  visibly  displayed  in  the  eternal 
world.  He  whose  life  is  a  continued  scene  of  vicious  in¬ 
dulgence,  and  who  has  devoted  himself  to  «  work  all  man¬ 
ner  of  uncleanness  with  greediness,”  becomes,  by  such  ha¬ 
bits,  “  a  vessel  of  wrath  fitted  for  destruction ;”  and,  from 
the  very  constitution  ot  things,  there  is  no  possibility  of  es- 
caping  misery  in  the  tuture  state,  if  his  existence  be  pro¬ 
longed.  Whereas,  he  who  is  devoted  to  the  practice  of 
holiness,  who  loves  his  Creator  with  supreme  affection,  and 
his  neighbour  as  himself,  who  adds  to  his  faith  “virtue, 
knowledge,  temperance,  patience,  brotherly-kindness,  and 
charity,”  is,  by  such  graces,  rendered  fit  for  everlasting 
communion  with  the  Father  of  spirits,  and  for  delightful 
association  with  all  the  holy  intelligences  that  people  his 
immense  empire.  Again,  the  belief  of  a  future  world  should 
excite  11s  to  the  exercise  of  contentment ,  and  reconcile  our 
minds  to  whatever  privations  or  afflictions  Providence  may 
allot  to  us  in  the  present  world.  “For  the  sufferings  of 
the  present  time  are  not  worthy  to  be  compared  with  the 
g  ory  which  is  to  be  revealed.”  If  we  believe  that  the  whole 
train  of  circumstances  connected  with  our  present  lot,  is  ar¬ 
ranged  by  Infinite  Wisdom  and  Benevolence,  every  thing 
that  befalls  us  here  must  have  a  certain  bearing  on  the  fu¬ 
ture  world,  and  have  a  tendency  to  prepare  us  for  engaging 
in  its  exercises  and  for  relishing  its  enjoyments.  In  short, 
if  we  recognise  the  idea  of  an  immortal  life,  we  will  endea¬ 
vour  to  acquire  clear  and  comprehensive  views  of  its  na¬ 
ture,  its  pleasures,  and  its  employments.  .We  will  not  rest 
satisfied  with  vague  and  confused  conceptions  of  celestial 
bliss;  but  will  endeavour  to  form  as  precise  and  definite 
ideas  on  this  subject  as  the  circumstances  of  our  sublunary 
station  will  permit.  We  will  search  the  Oracles  of  Divine 
Revelation,  and  the  discoveries  of  science,  and  endeavour  to 
educe  from  both  the  sublimest  conceptions  we  can  form  of 
the  glories  of  that  “inheritance  which  is  incorruptible,  un- 
denled,  and  that  fadeth  not  away,  which  is  reserved  in  hea¬ 
ven  for  the  faithful.” 

In  a  word,  if  our  minds  are  as  deeply  impressed  with  this 
subject  as  its  importance  demands,  we  shall  experience  feel¬ 
ings  similar  to  those  which  affected  the  mind  of  Hierony¬ 
mus  when  he  contemplated  the  dissolution  of  the  world,  and 
the  solemnities  of  the  last  judgment. — “  Whether  I  eat  or 
drink,  or  in  whatever  other  action  or  employment  I  am  en- 


PROOFS  FROM  DIVINE  REVELATION. 


123 


gaged,  that  solemn  voice  always  seems  to  sound  in  my  ears, 
‘Arise  ye  dead,  and  come  to  judgment!’  As  often  as  I 
think  of  the  day  of  judgment,  my  heart  quakes,  and  my 
whole  frame  trembles.  If  I  am  to  indulge  in  any  of  the 
pleasures  of  the  present  life,  I  am  resolved  to  do  it  in  such 
a  way,  that  the  solemn  realities  of  the  future  judgment  may 
never  be  banished  from  my  recollection.”* 

*  Sive  comedam,  sive  bibam,  sive  aliquid  aliudfaciam,  semper  vox 
ilia  in  auribus  meus  sonare  videtur:  Surgite  Mortui,  et  venite  ad  ju¬ 
dicium.  Quotius  diem  judicii  cogito,  totus  corde  et  corpore  contre- 
misco.  Si  qua  enim  prsesentis  vitae  est  laetitise,  ita  agenda  est,  Ut  nun- 
quam,  amaritudo  futuri  judicii  recedat  a  memoria. 


PART  II. 


ON  THE  CONNEXION  OF  SCIENCE  WITH  A 
FUTURE  STATE. 

A  great  outcry  has  frequently  been  made,  by  many  of 
those  who  wish  to  be  considered  as  pious  persons,  about  the 
vanity  of  human  science.  Certain  divines  in  their  writings, 
and  various  descriptions  of  preachers,  in  their  pulpit  de¬ 
clamations,  not  unfrequent.ly  attempt  to  embellish  their  dis¬ 
courses,  and  to  magnify  the  truths  of  Scripture,  by  contrast¬ 
ing  them  with  what  they  are  pleased  to  call  “the  perishing 
treasures  of  scientific  knowledge.”  “  The  knowledge  we 
derive  from  the  Scriptures,”  say  they,  “is  able  to  make  us 
wise  unto  salvation ;  all  other  knowledge  is  but  compara¬ 
tive  folly.  The  knowledge  of  Christ  and  him  crucified  will 
endure  for  ever ;  but  all  human  knowledge  is  transitory, 
and  will  perish  for  ever  when  this  world  comes  to  an  end. 
Men  weary  themselves  with  diving  into  human  science,  while 
all  that  results  to  them  is  vanity  and  vexation  of  spirit.  Men 
may  become  the  greatest  philosophers,  and  have  their  un¬ 
derstandings  replenished  with  every  kind  of  human  know¬ 
ledge,  and  yet  perish  for  ever.  What  have  we  to  do  with 
the  planets  and  the  stars,  and  whether  they  be  peopled  with 
inhabitants  ?  Our  business  is  to  attend  to  the  salvation  of 
our  souls.” 

Now,  although  some  of  the  above  and  similar  assertions, 
when  properly  modified  and  explained,  may  be  admitted  as 
true,  the  greater  part  of  them,  along  with  hundreds  of  simi¬ 
lar  expressions,  are  either  ambiguous  or  false.  But,  although 
they  were  all  admitted  as  strictly  true,  what  effect  can  the 
frequent  reiteration  of  such  comparisons  and  contrasts  have 
on  the  mass  of  the  people  to  whom  they  are  addressed,  who 
are  already  loo  much  disinclined  to  the  pursuit  of  general 
knowledge — but  to  make  them  imagine,  that  it  is  useless, 
and  in  some  cases  dangerous,  to  prosecute  any  other  kind  of 
knowledge  than  what  is  derived  directly  from  the  Scriptures? 
And  what  is  the  knowledge  which  the  great  majority  of 
those  who  attend  the  public  services  of  religion  have  acquir¬ 
ed  of  the  contents  of  the  sacred  oracles  ?  It  is  too  often,  I 


INTRODUCTORY  REMARKS. 


125 


fear,  exceedingly  vague,  confused,  and  superficial ;  owing,  in 
a  great  measure,  to  the  want  of  those  habits  of  mental  exer¬ 
tion,  which  a  moderate  prosecution  of  useful  science  would 
have  induced. 

Such  declamations  as  those  to  which  I  have  now  adverted, 
obviously  proceed  from  a  very  limited  sphere  of  informa¬ 
tion,  and  a  contracted  range  of  thought.  It  is  rather  a  me¬ 
lancholy  reflection,  that  any  persons,  particularly  preachers 
of  the  gospel,  should  endeavour  to  apologize  for  their  own 
ignorance,  by  endeavouring  to  undervalue  what  they  ac¬ 
knowledge  they  have  never  acquired,  and  therefore,  cannot 
be  supposed  to  understand  and  appreciate.  For,  although 
several  well-informed  and  judicious  ministers  of  religion, 
have  been  led,  from  the  influence  of  custom,  and  from  copy¬ 
ing  the  expressions  of  others,  to  use  a  phraseology  which 
has  a  tendency  to  detract  from  the  utility  of  scientific  know¬ 
ledge,  yet  it  is  generally  the  most  ignorant,  those  whose 
reading  anu  observation  have  been  confined  within  the  nar¬ 
rowest  range,  who  are  most  forward  in  their  bold  and  vague 
declamations  on  this  topic.  We  never  find,  in  any  part  of 
the  Sacred  Records,  such  comparisons  and  contrasts  as  those 
to  which  1  allude.  The  inspired  writers  never  attempt  to 
set  the  word  of  God  in  opposition  to  his  works,  nor  attempt 
to  deter  men  from  the  study  of  the  wonders  of  his  creation, 
on  the  ground  that  it  is  of  less  importance  than  the  study 
of  his  word.  On  the  contrary,  they  take  every  proper  op¬ 
portunity  of  directing  the  attention  to  the  mechanism  and 
order,  the  magnificence  and  grandeur  of  the  visible  world  ; 
and  their  devotional  feelings  are  kindled  into  rapture  by 
such  contemplations.  When  the  Psalmist  had  finished  his 
survey  of  the  different  departmenls  of  nature,  as  described 
in  the  civ.  Psalm,  he  broke  out  into  the  following  devotional 
strains:  “  How  manifold  are  thy  works,  O  Lord!  in  wis¬ 
dom  hast  thou  made  them  all:  the  earth  is  full  of  thy  riches, 
so  is  the  great  and  wide  sea.  The  glory*  of  the  Lord  shall 
endure  for  ever,  the  Lord  shall  rejoice  in  all  his  works.  I 
will  sing  unto  the  Lord  as  long  as  I  live;  I  will  sing  praises 
to  my  God  while  I  have  my  being.”  For  the  visible  works 
of  God  display  the  same  essential  attributes  of  Deity,  and 
of  his  superintending  providence,  as  the  revelations  of  his 
word  ;  and  it  is  one  great  design  of  that  word  to  direct  men 

*  That  is,  the  display  of  the  divine  perfections  in  the  material  world, 
os  the  connexion  of  the  passage  plainly  intimates. 

11* 


126 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


to  a  rational  and  devout  contemplation  of  these  works  in 
which  his  glory  is  so  magnificently  displayed.  And,  there¬ 
fore,  to  attempt  to  magnify  the  word  of  God  by  degrading 
his  works,  or  to  set  the  one  in  opposition  to  the  other,  is  to 
attempt  to  set  the  Deity  in  opposition  to  himself,  and  to  pre¬ 
vent  mankind  from  offering  a  certain  portion  of  that  tribute 
of  adoration  and  thanksgiving  which  is  due  to  his  name. 

It  is  true,  indeed,  that  the  mere  philosopher  has  frequently 
been  disposed  to  contemplate  the  universe  as  if  it  were  a 
self-acting  and  independent  machine.  He  has  sometimes 
walked  through  the  magnificent  scenes  of  creation,  and  in¬ 
vestigated  the  laws  which  govern  the  motions  of  the  celes¬ 
tial  orbs,  and  the  agencies  which  produce  the  various  phe¬ 
nomena  of  our  sublunary  system,  without  offering  up  that 
tribute  of  thanksgiving  and  praise  which  is  due  to  the  great 
Hrst  Cause,  or  feeling  those  emotions  of  adoration  and 
reverence  which  such  studies  have  a  tendency  to  inspire. 
But  it  is  no  less  true,  that  the  mere  theologian  has,  likewise, 
not  unfrequcntly,  walked  through  the  field  of  revelation, 
studied  its  doctrines,  and  facts,  and  moral  requisitions,  writ¬ 
ten  volumes  in  support  of  its  heavenly  origin,  and  defended 
its  truths  against  the  cavils  of  adversaries,  without  feeling 
that  supreme  love  to  God  and  affection  towards  his  neigh¬ 
bour  which  it  is  the  great  object  of  the  Scriptures  to  produce, 
and  displaying  a  disposition  and  conduct  directly  repugnant 
to  its  holy  precepts.  An  argument  founded  on  the  impiety 
of  certain  pretended  philosophers,  to  dissuade  us  from  the 
study  of  the  material  world,  would,  therefore,  be  equally 
powerful  to  deter  us  from  the  study  of  divine  revelation, 
when  we  consider  that  many  w'ho  profess  to  receive  its  doc¬ 
trines,  live  in  open  defiance  of  its  most  sacred  requisitions. 
In  both  cases,  such  examples  merely  show,  that  man  is  a 
trail  inconsistent  being,  and  too  frequently  disposed  to 
overlook  his  Creator,  and  to  wander  from  the  source  of 
happiness. 

In  a  work  entitled,  “  The  Christian  Philospher ,”  I  have 
endeavoured  to  illustrate  this  subject  at  considerable  length, 
and  to  show,  that  the  investigation  of  the  works  of  creation, 
under  the  guidance  of  true  science,  has  a  tendencv  to  ex¬ 
pand  our  conceptions  of  the  power,  wisdom,  benevolence, 
and  superintending  providence  of  God, — and  that  the  vari¬ 
ous  sciences  and  the  inventions  of  art  may  be  rendered  sub¬ 
servient  in  promoting  the  objects- of  true  religion,  and  dif¬ 
fusing  its  influence  among  the  nations,— At  present,  I  shall 


SCIENCE  DEFINED  AND  ILLUSTRATED. 


127 


confine  my  views,  in  the  few  following  remarks,  to  the 
illustration  of  the  following  position — “That  science  has  a 
relation  to  a  future  state.” 

It  is  a  very  vague,  and,  in  many  points  of  view,  a  false 
assertion,  which  has  so  frequently  been  reiterated — that, 
what  is  generally  termed  human  knowledge,  or  the  sciences, 
have  no  connexion  with  an  immortal  existence,  and  that 
they  will  be  of  no  utility  whatever  when  this  world  comes 
to  an  end. — Truth  of  every  description,  is  from  its  very 
nature,  eternal  and  unchangeable ;  and,  consequently,  it 
connot  be  supposed  a  preposterous  opinion,  that  the  es¬ 
tablished  principles  of  several  of  our  sciences  will  be  the 
basis  of  reasoning  and  of  action  in  a  future  state  as  well  as 
in  the  present.  That  a  whole  is  greater  than  any  of  its 
parts ;  that  the  three  angles  of  a  triangle  are  equal  to  two 
right  angles  ;  that  the  sides  of  a  plain  triangle  are  to  one 
another,  as  the  sides  of  the  angles  opposite  to  them:  these 
and  many  similar  propositions  are  equally  true  in  heaven  as 
on  earth,  and  may  probably  be  as  useful  truths  there  as  in 
our  present  abode. 

OBJECT  OF  SCIENTIFIC  INVESTIGATION. 

In  order  to  avoid  misconception,  and  a  confusion  of 
thought  on  this  subject,  it  may  not  be  improper  in  the  first 
place,  to  define  and  illustrate  what  is  meant  by  the  term 
Science. 

Science,  in  its  most  general  acceptation  denotes  know¬ 
ledge  of  every  description ;  in  a  more  restricted  sense,  it 
denotes  that  species  of  knowledge  which  is  acquired  chiefly 
by  the  exercise  of  the  human  faculties  ;  and  in  a  still  more 
restricted  sense,  it  denotes  that  systematic  species  of  know¬ 
ledge  which  consists  of  rule  and  order, — such  as  geometry, 
arithemetic,  algebra,  natural  philosophy,  geography,  astrono¬ 
my,  chemistry,  mineralogy,  and  botany. — In  the  observa¬ 
tions  which  follow,  the  term  may  be  taken  in  any  one  of 
these  senses  ;  but  particularly  in  the  last,  which  is  its  most 
common  and  appropriate  meaning. 

By  means  of  scientific  investigation,  the  powers  of  the 
human  mind  have  been  wonderfully  strengthened  and  ex¬ 
panded,  and  our  knowledge  of  the  operations  of  the  Crea¬ 
tor  extensively  enlarged.  Science  has  enabled  us  to  trans¬ 
port  ourselves  from  one  continent  to  another,  to  steer  our 
course  through  the  pathless  ocean,  and  to  survey  all  the 
variety  of  scenery  which  the  terraqueous  globe  displays; 


128 


rilE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


it  has  taught  us  to  mount  upwards  to  the  region  of  the 
clouds,  and  to  penetrate  into  the  bowels  of  the  earth,  to 
explore  the  changes  which  the  earth  has  undergone  since 
the  period  of  its  creation.  It  has  laid  open  to  our  view  the 
nature  .and  constitution  of  the  atmosphere,  the  principles  of 
which  it  is  composed,  and  its  agency  in  supporting  fire  and 
flame,  and  vegetable  and  animal  life.  On  the  principles 
which  science  has  established,  we  have  been  enabled  to 
ascertain  the  distances  of  many  of  the  heavenly  bodies,  to 
compute  their  magnitudes,  and  to  determine  the  periods  of 
their  revolutions ;  and  by  means  of  the  instruments  it  has 
invented,  we  have  been  enabled  to  take  a  nearer  survey  of 
distant  worlds — to  contemplate  new  wonders  of  creating 
power  in  regions  of  the  sky  which  lie  far  beyond  the  ut¬ 
most  stretch  of  the  unassisted  eye, — and  to  explore  those 
invisible  regions,  where  myriads  of  living  beings  are  con¬ 
centrated  within  the  compass  of  a  visible  point. — In  conse¬ 
quence  of  such  discoveries,  we  have  been  enabled  to  ac¬ 
quire  more  clear  and  ample  conceptions  of  the  amazing 
energies  of  omnipotence,  of  the  inscrutable  depths  of  infi¬ 
nite. wisdom,  of  the  Overruling  providence  of  the  Almighty, 
of  the  benevolent  care  he  exercises  over  all  his  creatures, 
and  of  the  unlimited  extent  of  those  dominions  over  which 
he  eternally  presides. 

The  faculties  by  which  man  has  been  enabled  to  make 
the  discoveries  to  which  I  have  alluded,  were  implanted  in 
his  constitution  by  the  hand  of  his  Creator;  and  the  objects 
on  which  these  faculties  are  exercised,  are  the  works  of  the 
Creator,  which,  the  more  minutely  they  are  investigated,  the 
more  strikingly  do  they  display  the  glory  of  his  character 
and  perfections.  Consequently,  it  must  have  been  the  in¬ 
tention  of  the  Creator  that  man  should  employ  the  powers  he 
has  given  him  in  scientific  researches;  otherwise,  he  would 
neither  have  endowed  him  with  such  noble  faculties,  nor 
have  opened  to  his  view  so  large  a  portion  of  his  empire. 
Scientific  investigations,  therefore,  are  to  be  considered  as 
nothing  less  than  inquiries  into  the  plans  and  operations  ot 
the  Eternal,  in  order  to  unfold  the  attributes  of  his  nature, 
his  providential  procedure  in  the  government  of  his  crea¬ 
tures,  and  the  laws  by  which  he  directs  the  movements  of 
universal  nature.  It  is  true,  indeed,  that  every  one  who 
calls  himself  a  philosopher  may  not  keep  this  end  in  view  in 
the  prosecution  of  scientific  acquirements,  lie  may  per- 
haps  be  actuated  merely  by  a  principle  of  curiosity,  by  a 


OBJECTS  OF  STUDY  IN  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


129 


love  of  worldly  gain,  or  by  a  desire  to  acquire  reputation 
among  the  learned  by  the  discoveries  he  may  bring  to  light, 
just  in  the  same  way  as  some  theologians  are  actuated  in  prose¬ 
cuting  the  study  of  the  Christian  system.  But  the  dis¬ 
coveries  which  have  been  made  by  such  persons,  are,  not¬ 
withstanding,  real  developements  of  the  plans  of  the  Deity, 
and  open  to  a  devout  mind  a  more  expansive  viewr  of  the 
power,  wisdom,  and  benevolence  of  Him  who  is  “  wonder¬ 
ful  in  counsel  and  excellent  in  working.”  It  is  our  own 
fault  if  we  do  not  derive  useful  instruction  from  the  inves¬ 
tigations  a-nd  discoveries  of  philosophy ;  it  is  owing  to  our 
want  of  intelligence  to  discriminate  between  the  experi¬ 
ments  of  men,  and  the  operations  of  God,  and  to  the  want 
of  that  reverence,  humility,  and  devotion,  which  ought  to 
accompany  us  in  all  our  studies  and  contemplations  of  na¬ 
ture.  Science,  therefore,  from  whatever  motives  it  may  be 
prosecuted,  is,  in  effect,  and  in  reality,  an  inquiry  after  God: 
it  is  the  study  of  angels  and  other  superior  intelligences; 
and  we  cannot  suppose  there  is  a  holy  being  throughout  the 
universe  that  is  not  employed,  in  one  mode  or  another,  in 
scientific  research  and  investigation;  unless  we  can  sup¬ 
pose  that  there  are  moral  intelligences  who  are  insensible 
to  the  displays  of  the  Divine  glory,  and  altogether  indiffe¬ 
rent,  whether  or  not  they  make  progress  in  the  knowledge 
of  their  Creator. 

OBJECTS  ON  WHICH  THE  FACULTIES  OF  CELESTIAL  INTELLI¬ 
GENCES  WILL  BE  EMPLOYED. 

Let  us  now  consider  the  objects  on  which  the  faculties  of 
celestial  intelligences  will  be  employed  in  the  way  of  scien¬ 
tific  investigation. 

The  grand  scene  of  universal  nature — that  august  theatre 
on  which  the  Almighty  displays,  to  countless  myriads,  his 
glorious  perfections — will  remain  substantially  the  same  as 
it  is  at  present,  after  all  the  changes  in  reference  to  our 
globe  shall  have  taken  place ;  and  the  clear  and  expansive 
view  of  its  economy,  its  movements,  and  its  peculiar  glories, 
which  will  then  be  laid  open  to  their  inspection,  will  exercise 
the  faculties,  and  form  a  considerable  portion  of  the  felicity 
of  renovated  moral  agents. 

That  the  general  system  of  nature  will  remain  materially 
the  same,  when  the  present  fabric  of  our  globe  is  dissolved, 
may  be  argued,  1.  From  the  immense  number  and  magnitude 
of  the  bodies  of  which  it  is  composed. — In  every  direction 


130 


the  philosophy  of  a  Future  state. 


to  which  we  pan  turn  our  eyes,  the  universe  appears  to  be 
replenished  with  countless  orbs  of  light,  diffusing  their 
splendours  from  regions  immeasurably  distant.  Nearly  one 
hundred  millions  of  these  globes  are  visible  through  teles¬ 
copes  of  the  greatest  magnifying  power;  and  it  is  more  than 
probable,  that  beyond  the  reach  of  the  finest  glasses  that 
art  has  ever  constructed,  thousands  of  millions  exist  in  the 
unexplored  regions  of  immensity,  which  the  eye  of  man, 
while  he  remains  in  this  lower  world,  will  never  be  able  to 
descry.  All  these  luminous  globes,  too,  are  bodies  of 
immense  magnitude  ;  compared  with  any  one  of  which,  the 
whole  earth  dwindles  into  an  inconsiderable  ball.  It  is 
probable  that  the  smallest  of  them  is  at  least  one  hundred 
thousand  times  larger  than  the  globe  on  which  we  live. — 2. 
All  these  bodies  ere  immensely  distant  from  the  earth.  Al¬ 
though  we  could  wring  our  course  with  a  swiftness  equal  to 
ten  thousand  miles  a-day,  it  Would  require  more  than  five 
millions  of  years  before  we  could  reach  the  nearest  star  ;  and 
the  more  distant  of  these  orbs  are  placed  in  regions  so 
immensely  distant,  that  the  imagination  is  bewildered  and 
overpowered  when  it  attempts  to  grasp  the  immeasurable 
extent  which  intervenes  between  usandthem.  This  circum¬ 
stance  proves,  that  these  bodies  are  of  an  immense  size  and 
splendour,  since  they  are  visible  at  such  distances ;  and 
consequently  demonstrates,  that  each  of  them  is  destined, 
in  its  respective  sphere,  to  accomplish  some  noble  purpose, 
worthy  of  the  plans  of  a  Being  of  infinite  wisdom  and  good¬ 
ness. — 3.  The  whole  of  this  vast  assemblage  of  suns  and 
worlds  has  no  immediate  connexion  with  the  present  con¬ 
stitution  and  arrangement  of  our  globe.  There  are  no  ce¬ 
lestial  bodies  that  have  any  immediate  connexion  with  the 
earth,  or  direct  influence  upon  it,  except  the  sun,  the  moon, 
and  several  of  the  planets  ;  and  therefore,  those  more  distant 
orbs,  to  which  I  allude,  cannot  be  supposed  to  be  involved 
in  the  physical  evils  which  the  fall  of  man  has  introduced 
into  our  world  ;  or  to  have  the  least  connexion  with  any 
future  change  or  catastrophe  that  may  befall  the  terraqueous 
globe.  Though  this  globe,  and  “  all  that  it  inherits,”  were 
dissolved  ;  yea,  although  the  sun  himself  and  his  surrounding 
olanets  were  set  in  a  blaze,  and  blotted  for  ever  out  of  crea¬ 
tion  ;  the  innumerable  and  vast  bodies  which  replenish  the 
distant  regions  of  the  universe,  would  still  exist,  and  con¬ 
tinue  to  illuminate  the  voids  of  creation  with  undiminished 
splendour, 


EXTENT  OF  THE  CONFLAGRATION. 


131 


EXTENT  OF  THE  GENERAL  CONFLAGRATION. 

From  the  considerations  now  stated,  it  is  evident,  that  the 
changes  which  are  predicted  to  take  place  at  the  general 
conflagration,  will  not  extend  beyond  the  environs  of  our 
globe,  or  at  farthest,  beyond  the  limits  of  the  solar  sys¬ 
tem.  There  is,  indeed  no  reason  to  conclude,  that  they 
will  extend  beyond  the  terraqueous  globe  itself  and  its  sur¬ 
rounding  atmosphere :  for  since  all  the  revelations  of 
Scripture  have  a  peculiar  reference  to  the  inhabitants  of 
this  globe,  the  predicted  changes  which  are  to  take  place  in 
its  physical  constitution,  at  the  close  of  the  present  econo¬ 
my  of  Providence,  must  be  considered  as  limited  to  the 
same  sphere.  As  the  world  was  formerly  destroyed  by  a 
deluge  of  waters,  in  consequence  of  the  depravity  of  man, 
so  its  destruction  by  fire  will  take  place,  for  the  same  rea¬ 
son,  in  order  that  it  may  be  purified  from  all  the  effects  of 
the  curs-e  which  was  originally  pronounced  upon  the  ground 
for  man’s  sake,  and  restored  so  its  former  order  and  beau¬ 
ty.  But  there  is  not  the  smallest  reason  to  conclude,  either 
from  Scripture  or  the  general  constitution  of  the  universe, 
that  this  destruction  will  extend  beyond  that  part  of  the 
frame  of  nature  which  was  subjected  to  the  curse,  and  is 
physically  connected  with  the  sin  of  man;  and  consequent¬ 
ly,  will  be  entirely  confined  to  certain  changes  which  will 
be  effected  throughout  the  continents,  islands,  and  oceans, 
and  in  the  higher  and  lower  regions  of  the  atmosphere. 

This  appears  to  be  the  sense  in  which  the  most  judicious 
expositors  of  Scripture  interpret  those  passages  which  have 
a  particular  reference  to  this  event.  Dr.  Guyse,  in  his 
“Paraphrase  on  the  New  Testament,”  interprets  2  Peter 
iii.  7, 12.  precisely  in  this  sense:  “  When  that  final  decisive 
day  of  the  Lord  Jesus  shall  come. — the  aerial  heavens,  being 
all  in  a  flame,  shall  be  destroyed,  and  the  constituent  principles 
of  the  atmosphere,  together  with  the  earth  and  all  things  in 
it,  shall  be  melted  down  by  an  intense  dissolving  heat,  into 
a  confused  chaos,  like  that  out  of  which  they  were  orignally 
formed.”  And  in  a  note  on  this  paraphrase  he  remarks, 

1“  By  the  heavens  is  meant  here  the  aerial  heavens.  For 
the  heavens  and  the  earth  are  here  spoken  of  in  opposi¬ 
tion  to  those  of  the  old  world,  which  could  mean  nothing 
more  than  the  earth  and  its  former  atmosphere,  the  state 
of  which  underwent  a  great  alteration  by  the  flood.” — “By 
the  heavens  and  the  earth ,  in  such  passages  as  these,”  says 


132  the  philosophy  of  a  future  state. 

»he  learned  Dr.  Mede,  “is  to  be  understood,  that  part  of 
nature  which  was  subjected  to  the  curse,  or  that  is  m- 
habited  by  Christ’s  enemies,  and  includes  in  it  the  eaitb, 
water,  and  air,  but  not  the  heavenly  bodies,  which  are  not 
only  a  vast  distance  from  it,  but  is  little  more  than  a  pom  , 
if  compared  to  them  for  magnitude.  —Dr.  Dwight,  when 
adverting  to  this  subjcet  expresses  the  same  sentiment  . 
“The  phrase  heavens  and  earth  (says  he)  in  Jewish  plna- 
seology  denoted  the  universe.  In  the  present  case,  how¬ 
ever,  (2  Peter  iii.  10,  12,  13.)  the  words  appear  Jo  bowed 
with  a  meaning  less  extended,  where  it  is  declared,  that  that 
which  is  intended  by  both  terms,  shall  be  consumed,  dis¬ 
solved,  and  pass  away.  This  astonishing  event,  we  are 
taught,  shall  take  placp  at  the  final  judgment:  and  lie 
have  no  hint  in  the  scriptures,  that  the  judgment  unll  in¬ 
volve  any  other  beings  besides  angels  and  men. 

From  the  preceding  considerations,  it  is  obvious,  that 
when  the  inspired  writers  use  such  expressions  as  these,— 
“The  stars  shall  fall  from  heaven,”  “the  powers  of  heaven 
shall  be  shaken,”  and,  “the  heaven  departed  as  a  scroll, 
they  are  to  be  understood  not  in  a  literal,  but  in  a  jigura- 
tive  sense,  as  denoting  changes,  convulsions,  and  revolu¬ 
tions,*  in  the  moral  world.  And  when,  m  reference  to  the 
dissolution  of  our  globe  and  its  appendages,  it  is  said.  Unit 
“  the  heavens  shall  pass  away  with  a  mighty  noise,  the 
aerial  heaven,  or  the  surrounding  at  mosphere  is  to  be  under¬ 
stood.  How  this  appendage  to  our  world  may  be  dissolv¬ 
ed,  or  pass  away  with  a  mighty  noise,  it  is  not  difficult  to 
conceive,  now  that  we  have  become  acquainted  with  the 
nature  and  energies  of  its  constituent  parts.  One  essentia! 
part  of  the  atmosphere  contains  the  principle  of  name  ;  ana 
if  this  principle  were  not  counteracted  by  its  connexion 
with  another  ingredient,  or  were  it  let  loose  to  exert  its 
energies  without  control,  instantly  one  immense  flame  would 
envelope  the  terraqueous  globe,  which  would  set  on  fire  the 
foundations  of  the  mountains,  vrap  the  ocean  in  a  blaze, 
and  dissolve,  not  only  coals,  wood,  and  other  combustibles, 
but  the  hardest  substances  in  nature.  It  is  more  than 
probable  that  when  the  last  catastrophe  of  our  globe  arrives, 
the  oxygen  and  nitrogen,  or  the  two  constituent  principles 
of  the  atmosphere,  will  be  separ;  ted  by  the  interposition  of 
almighty  power.  And  the  me  ment  this  separation  takes 
place  it  is  easy  to  conceive,  that  a  tremendous  concussion 
will  ensue,  and  the  most  dreadlul  explosions  will  resound 


REMARKS  ON  THE  CONFLAGRATION. 


133 


throughout  the  whole  of  the  expanse  which  surrounds  the 
globe,  which  will  stun  the  assembled  world,  and  shake  the 
earth  to  its  foundations.  For,  if,  in  chemical  experiments, 
conducted  on  a  small  scale,  the  separation  of  two  gases,  or 
their  corning  in  contact  with  the  principle  of  flame,  is  fre¬ 
quently  accompanied  with  a  loud  and  destructive  explosion, 
— it  is  impossible  to  form  an  adequate  idea  of  the  loud  and 
tremendous  explosions  which  would  ensue  were  the  whole 
atmosphere  at  once  dissolved ,  and  its  elementary  principles 
separated  from  each  other  and  left  to  exert  their  native  en¬ 
ergies.  A  sound  as  if  creation  had  burst  asunder,  and  ac¬ 
companied  the  next  moment  with  a  universal  blaze,  extend¬ 
ing  over  sea  and  land,  would  present  a  scene  of  sublimity 
and  terror,  which  would  more  than  realize  all  the  striking 
descriptions  given  in  Scripture  of  this  solemn  scene. 

Again,  when  in  reference  to  this  tremendous  event,  it  is 
said,  that  “  the  earth  and  the  heaven  fled  away,”  (Rev.  xx. 
11  ,)  we  are  not  to  imagine,  that  the  distant  bodies  of  the 
universe  shall  be  either  annihilated,  or  removed  from  the 
spaces  they  formerly  occupied  ;  but  that  all  sublunary  na¬ 
ture  shall  be  thrown  into  confusion  and  disorder,  and  that 
the  celestial  orbs,  during  this  universal  uproar  of  the  ele¬ 
ments,  will  be  eclipsed  from  the  view,  and  appear  as  if  they 
had  fled  away.  The  appearance  of  the  heavens  whirling 
with  a  confused  and  rapid  motion,  at  this  period,  would  be 
produced,  were  the  Almighty  (as  will  probably  be  the  case) 
suddenly  to  put  a  stop  to  the  diurnal  rotation  of  the  earth, 
or  to  increase  the  rate  of  its  motion  ;  in  which  case,  the  ce¬ 
lestial  luminaries  would  appear  either  to  stop  in  their  courses, 
or  to  be  thrown  into  rapid  and  irregular  agitations.  And 
the  appearance  of  the  heavens  in  reality  receding  from  the 
view,  would  be  produced,  were  the  earth  to  leave  its  pre¬ 
sent  station  among  the  planets,  and  to  be  impelled  with  a 
rapid  motion  towards  the  distant  parts  of  the  solar  system, 
or  beyond  its  boundaries  ;  in  which  case,  the  sun  would  ap¬ 
pear  to  fly  off,  with  a  rapid  motion,  to  a  distant  part  of  space, 
till  he  had  diminished  to  the  size  of  a  twinkling  star,  anu  me 
moon  and  the  nearest  planets  would,  in  a  short  time,  entire¬ 
ly  disappear.  Whether  these  suppositions  exactly  corres¬ 
pond  with  the  arrangements  which  Divine  Wisdom  has  made 
in  reference  to  the  general  conflagration,  I  do  not  take  upon 
me  positively  to  determine.  But  I  have  stated  them,  in  order 
to  show,  that  all  the  descriptions  contained  in  Scripture,  of 
the  dissolution  of  our  globe,  and  of  the  circumstances  con- 

12 


134  THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FtlTLHE  STATE. 

nected  with  it,  can  be  easily  accounted  for,  and  may  be  fully 
realized,  without  supposing  any  change  to  take  place  in  the 
universe  beyond  the  limits  of  the  earth  and  its  atmosphere. 

To  suppose,  as  some  have  done,  that  the  whole  fabric  of 
creation  will  be  shattered  to  pieces,  that  the  stars  will  literal¬ 
ly  fall  from  their  orbs,  and  the  material  universe  be  blotted 
out  of  existence,  is  a  sentiment  so  absurd  and  extravagant, 
and  so  contrary  to  the  general  tenor  of  Scripture,  antf  the 
character  of  God,  that  it  is  astonishing  it  should  ever  have 
been  entertained  by  any  man,  calling  himself  a  divine  or  a 
Christian  preacher.*  I  have  already  had  occasion  to  re¬ 
mark,  that  there  is  no  example  of  annihilation,  or  an  entire 
destruction  of  material  substances,  to  be  found  in  the  uni¬ 
verse,  and  that  it  is  to  the  last  degree  improbable,  that  any 
one  particle  of  matter  which  now  exists  will  ever  be  com¬ 
pletely  destroyed,  however  numerous  the  changes  that  may 
take  place  in  the  universe.!  We  have  no  reason  to  believe, 
that  even  those  changes  to  which  our  world  is  destined,  at 
the  general  conflagration,  will  issue  in  its  entire  destruction. 
The  materials  of  which  the  earth  and  its  atmosphere  are 
composed  will  still  continue  to  exist,  after  its  present  struc¬ 
ture  is  deranged,  and  will,  in  all  probability,  be  employed 
in  the  arrangement  of  a  new  system,  purified  from  the  phy¬ 
sical  evils  which  now  exist,  and  which  may  continue  to  flou¬ 
rish  as  a  monument  ol  Divine  power  and  wisdom,  through¬ 
out  an  indefinite  lapse  of  ages. 

In  accordance  with  these  sentiments,  we  find  the  inspired 
writers  asserting  the  stability  and  perpetuity  of  the  material 

*  As  a  specimen  of  the  vague  and  absurd  declamations  on  this  sub- 
joct,^  which  have  been  published  both  from  the  pulpit  and  the  press, 
the  following  extract  from  a  modern  and  elegantly  printed  volume  of 
sermons  may  suffice.  u  The  blast  of  the  se/enth  trumpet  thundering 
with  tei riffic  clangour  through  the  skv,  and  echoing  from  world  to 
world,  shall  fill  the  universe,  and  time  -shall  be  no  more !  The  six 
trumpets  have  already  sounded  :  when  the  seventh  shall  blow,  a  total 
change  shall  take  place  throughout  the  creation  ;  the  vast  globe  which 
we  now  inhabit  shall  dissolve,  and  mingle  with  yon  beauteous  azure 
firmament,  with  sun,  and  moon,  and  all  the  immense  luminaries  flamiiur 
there,  in  one  undistinguished  ruin  ;  all  shall  vanish  away  like  a  Heel¬ 
ing  vapour,  a  visionary  phantom  of  the  night,  and  not  a  single  trace 
of  them  be  found  !  Even  the  last  enemy.  Death,  shall  be  destroyed 
and  time  itseif  shall  be  no  more  !”  &c.  &c.  When  such  bombastic  rant 
is  thundered  in  the  ears  of  Christian  people,  it  is  no  wonder  that  their 
ideas  on  this  subject  become  extremely  incorrect,  and  even  extrava¬ 
gantly  absurd. 

t  See  Sect.  x.  page  88 


PERPETUITY  OF  THE  MATERIAL  UNIVERSE.  135 

universe.  In  a  passage  formerly  alluded  to,  the  Psalmist, 
after  having  contemplated  the  scenes  of  the  material  crea¬ 
tion,  declares,  in  reference  to  these  visible  manifestations  of 
the  divine  perfections, — “  The  glory  of  the  Lord  shall  en¬ 
dure  for  ever,  the  Lord  shall  rejoice  in  all  his  works.”  And 
tiie  Apostle  Peter,  when  describing  the  dissolution  of  the 
elementary  parts  of  our  globe,  intimates,  at  the  same  time, 
the  continued  existence  of  the  visible  fabric  of  nature.  ‘‘‘We 
look,”  says  he,  “  for  new  heavens  and  a  new  earth,  wherein 
dwelleth  righteousness.”  The  same  truth  is  incidentally 
declared  in  many  other  portions  of  Scripture.  In  the  pro¬ 
phecies  respecting  the  Messiah  and  the  duration  of  his 
kingdom,  it  is  declared,  that  “His  name  shall  endure  for 
ever,  his  name  shall  be  continued  as  long  as  the  sun.  His 
seed  shall  endure  for  ever,  and  his  throne  as  the  sun  before 
me  which  expressions  evidently  imply  that  the  sun  will 
not  be  blotted  out  of  creation,  but  continue  to  hold  a  station 
in  the  universe  as  long  as  the  Redeemer  and  his  subjects 
exist.  It  is  also  stated,  in  reference  to  the  same  illustrious 
personage,  “  His  seed  will  I  make  to"  endure  for  ever,  and 
his  throne  as  the  days  of  heaven ;”  which  intimates,  that  the 
heavens  will  endure  as  long  as  the  government  of  Immanuel. 
In  reference  to  the  stability  and  perpetuity  of  the  celestial 
luminaries,  it  i-s  declared,  that  “Jehovah  hath  prepared  his 
throne  in  the  heavens .”  And  when  the  Psalmist  calls  upon 
all  the  beings  in  the  universe  to  celebrate  the  praises  of  the 
Creator,  he  says,  in  reference  to  the  orbs  of  heaven,  “  Praise 
ye  him,  sun  and  moon,  praise  him  all  ye  stars  of  light : 
let  them  praise  the  name  of  the  Lord  ;  for  he  commanded, 
and  they  were  created.  He  hath  also  stablished  them  for 
ever  and  ever ;  he  hath  made  a  decree  which  shall  not  pass;* 
which  expressions  evidently  imply,  that,  whatever  changes 
i>  ay  happen  in  particular  systems,  the  great  body  of  the 
elestial  orbs,  which  constitute  some  of  the  grandest  scenes 
af  the  universe,  will  remain  stable  and  permanent  as  the 
throne  of  the  Eternal. — But,  not  to  multiply  quotations — 
the  following  declaration  of  Jehovah  by  the  prophet  Jere¬ 
miah  is  quite  decisive  on  this  point.  “Thus  saith  the  Lord, 
who  giveth  the  sun  for  a  light  by  day,  and  the  ordinances 
of  the  moon  and  of  the  stars  for  a  light  by  night :  The  Lord 
of  Hosts  is  his  name.  If  these  ordinances  depart  from  be 
fore  me,  saith  the  Lord,  then  the  seed  of  Israel  also  shall 


*  See  Psalm  lxxii.  17,  lxxxix.  36,  &c.  ciii.  19.  cxlviii.  3 — 7, 


136 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


cease  from  being  a  nation  before  me  for  ever,”*  which  words 
plainly  imply,  that  if  these  luminaries  continue  in  existence, 
the  accomplishment  of  the  divine  promise  is  secured  to  all 
the  spiritual  seed  of  Israel;  but  should  they  be  blotted  out 
of  creation,  or  depart  from  before  Jehovah,  the  happiness  of 
the  “  ransomed  ol  the  Lord,”  and  their  relation  to  him  as 
the  source  of  their  felicity,  would  be  terminated  for  ever. 
And  have  not  these  luminaries  continued  in  their  stations, 
since  this  prediction  was  announced,  during  a  period  of 
more  than  two  thousand  years?  And  do  they  not  still 
shine  with  undiminished  lustre  ?  Yes,  and  they  will  still 
continue  to  display  the  glory  of  their  Creator  while  count¬ 
less  ages  are  rolling  on.  Hence  it  is  declared,  with  respect 
to  “the  saints  of  the  Most  High,”  “They  that  be  teachers 
of  wisdom  shall  shine  as  the  brightness  of  the  firmament, 
and  they  that  turn  many  to  righteousness,  as  the  stars  for 
ever  a?id  ever .” 

In  short,  when  we  consider  the  boundless  extent  of  the 
starry  firmament,  the  scenes  of  grandeur  it  displays,  the 
new  luminaries,  which,  in  the  course  of  ages,  appear  to  be 
gradually  augmenting  its  splendour,  a,nd  the  countless  my¬ 
riads  of  exalted  intelligences  which  doubtless  people  its  ex¬ 
pansive  regions — when  we  consider  that  it  constitutes  the 
principal  portion  ol  the  empire  of  the  Eternal,  the  most  as¬ 
tonishing  scene  of  his  operations,  and  the  most  striking  dis¬ 
play  of  his  omnipotence  and  wisdom, — it  would  be  one  of 
the  most  extravagant  notions  that  can  possibly  be  entertain¬ 
ed, and  inconsistent  with  every  rational  and  Scriptural  idea 
we  can  form  of  the  goodness  and  intelligence  of  the  Deity, 
to  suppose,  that  these  vast  dominions  of  his,  in  which  his 
perfections  shine  with  a  splendour  so  ineffable,  will  ever  be 
suffered  to  fall  to  pieces,  or  to  sink  into  non-existence. 
With  almost  equal  reason  might  we  suppose,  that  the  Crea¬ 
tor  himself  would  cease  to  exist,  and  infinite  space  be  left 
as  a  boundless  blank  without  matter  and  intelligence. 

If  the  considerations  now  adduced  be  admitted  to  haye 
any  force,  and  if  the  position  I  have  endeavoured  to  esta¬ 
blish,  cannot  be  overthrown,  either  on  Scriptural  or  rational 
grounds — many  of  our  sermons  and  poems  which  profess  to 
give  a  description  of  the  scenes  of  the  “  Last  day,"  must  be 
considered  as  containing  a  species  of  bombast  which  has  a 
tendency  to  bewilder  the  mind,  and  to  produce  distorted 


Jeremiah  xxxi.  35,  36. 


CHANGES  IN  THE  SYSTEM  OF  NATURE. 


137 


views  ot  the  perfections  of  the  Creator,  and  of  the  wise 
arrangements  he  has  established  in  the  system  of  the  uni¬ 
verse.  A  celebrated  Poet,  when  expatiating  on  this  subject, 
in  order  to  give  effect  to  his  descriptions,  breaks  out  into 
the  following  extravagant  exclamations,  when  alluding  to 
the  starry  firmament: 

“  How  far  from  east  to  west?  The  lab ’ring  eye 
Can  scarce  the  distant  azure  hounds  descry — 

So  vast ,  this  world's  a  grain  ;  yet  myriads  grace 
With  golden  pomp  the  throng’d  ethereal  space. 

How  great,  how  firm,  how  sacred  all  appears  ! 

How  worthy  an  immortal  round  of  years  ! 

Yet  all  must  drop ,  as  autumn's  sickliest  grain, 

And  earth  and  firmament  be  sought  in  vain. 

Time  shall  be  slain,  all  nature  be  destroy'd , 

Nor  leave  an  atom  in  the  mighty  void. — 

One  universal  ruin  spreads  abroad, 

Nothing  is  safe  beneath  the  throne  of  God. 

Again, 

“  The  flakes  aspire,  and  make  the  heavens  their  prev. 

The  sun,  the  moon,  the  satrs,  all  melt  away  ; 

All,  all  is  lost,  no  monument,  no  sign, 

Whore  once  so  proudly  blaz’d  the  gay  machine,”  &e 

If  such  descriptions  were  to  be  literally  realized,  a  re¬ 
surrection  from  the  deadwould  be  an  absolute  impossibility — 
the  universe  would  be  reduced  to  an  immense  blank — and 
the  visible  glories  of  the  Creator,  by  which  alone  his  per¬ 
fections  are  recognised  by  finite  intelligences,  would  be 
eclipsed  in  the  darkness  of  eternal  night.  Poetical  scraps 
of  this  description,  are,  however,  frequently  reiterated  by 
flaming  orators,  in  order  to  give  effect  to  their  turgid  decla¬ 
mations,  while  they  have  no  other  tendency  than  to  lead 
their  hearers  into  a  maze  of  error  and  extravagancy,  to 
prevent  them  from  thinking  soberly  and  rationally  on  the 
scenes  predicted  in  Scripture,  and  to  excite  the  sneer  of  phi¬ 
losophical  infidels. 

The  only  passage  of  Scripture  which,  at  first  view,  seems 
to  militate  against  the  position  I  have  endeavoured  to  esta¬ 
blish,  is  that  contained  in  Psalm  cii.  25,  26.  “Of  old  hast 
thou  laid  the  foundation  of  the  earth  ;  and  the  heavens  are 
the  work  of  thy  hands  :  they  shall  perish,  but  thou  shalt 
endure;  yea,  all  of  them  shall  wax  old  like  a  garment;  as  a 
vesture  shalt  thou  change  them,  and  they  shall  be  changed: 
but  thou  art  the  same,”  &c.  Some  commentators,  as  Mr. 
Pierce  and  others,  suppose,  that  by  “  the  earth  and  heavens,” 
in  this  passage,  are  to  be  understood,  governments ,  or  civil 

12* 


138 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


end  ecclesiastical  states,  as  these  words,  in  their  figurative 
sense,  sometimes  denote.  But  this  does  not  appear  to  be 
the  sense  in  which  they  are  here  used.  Taken  in  their 
literal  sense,  they  may  refer  to  the  same  objects  and  events 
alluded  to  by  the  Apostle  Peter,  in  his  Second  Epistle,  chap, 
iii.  7,  10.  formerly  explained  ;  namely,  to  the  dissolution  of 
th  earth  and  the  aerial  heavens,  at  the  close  of  time.  But, 
supposing  that  the  words  were  taken  in  their  most  extensive 
sense,  as  denoting  the  whole  fabric  of  the  material  universe, 
it  would  not  in  the  least  invalidate  the  proposition  I  am 
now  supporting.  The  main  design  of  the  passage  is  to 
assert  the  eternity  and  immutability  of  God,  in  opposition 
to  the  mutable  nature  of  created  beings.  All  material 
things  are  liable  to  change  ;  but  change  does  not  imply  de¬ 
struction  or  annihilation.  When  it  is  said,  “  the  righteous 
perish  and  no  man  layeth  it  to  heart and  “  they  that  are 
far  from  God  shall  perish ,”  it  is  not  to  be  understood,  that 
either  the  one  or  the  other  shall  be  blotted  out  of  existence. 
So,  when  it  is  said  that  the  heavens  and  the  earth  shall 
perish,  a  change  or  revolution  is  implied,  but  not  an  entire 
destruction.  It  is  farther  said,  “Asa  vesture  they  shall  be 
folded  up,”  &c.  This  appears  to  be  spoken  in  allusion  to 
the  custom  which  obtains  in  the  Eastern  nations,  among  the 
grandees,  of  frequently  changing  their  garments  as  a  mark 
of  respect ;  and  seems  to  import,  the  ease,  and  celerity  with 
which  the  Divine  Being  can  accomplish  important  changes 
in  the  universe.  lie  can  accomplish  the  revolutions  of 
worlds  and  of  systems  with  an  ease  similar  to  that  of  a 
prince  changing  his  apparel,  or  laying  aside  his  vestments. 
But  his  changing  any  particular  system  from  its  original 
state,  implies  only  his  opening  a  new  scene,  and  varying  the 
course  of  his  dispensations  in  relation  to  a  certain  order  of 
his  creatures.  Nor  does  the  passage  under  consideration 
lead  us  to  conclude,  that  the  changes  alluded  to  shall  all 
take  place  throughout  the  whole  universe  at  the  same  period; 
but  they  may  be  considered  as  happening  at  different  periods 
throughout  the  lapse  of  infinite  duration,  according  to  the 
designs  which  his  wisdom  has  determined  to  accomplish. 

That  all  material  objects  are  subject  to  decomposition  and 
changes,  we  have  abundance  of  evidence  in  every  depart¬ 
ment  of  nature.  With  respect  to  the  earth  on  which  we 
tread,  we  perceive  the  soil  in  the  higher  grounds  gradually 
washed  down  by  the  action  of  winds  and  rains,  and  carried 
by  the  rivers  to  the  bed  of  the  ocean.  Banks  are  accumu- 


CHANGES  IN  THE  SYSTEM  OF  NATURE. 


139 


lating  at  the  mouths  of  rivers,  and  reefs  in  the  midst  of  the 
seas,  which  are  the  terror  of  mariners  and  obstructions  to 
navigation.  In  every  pit  and  quarry,  and  on  the  face  of 
every  crag  and  broken  precipice,  we  perceive  the  marks  of 
disorder,  and  the  effects  of  former  changes  and  convulsions 
of  nature;  while  around  the  bases  of  volcanic  mountains, 
we  behold  cities  buried  under  a  mass  of  solid  lava,  orchards 
and  vineyards  laid  waste,  and  fertile  fields  transformed  into 
a  scene  of  barrenness  and  desolation.  Observation  like¬ 
wise  demonstrates,  that  even  the  luminaries  of  heaven  a-re 
not  exempted  from  revolutions  and  changes.  The  law  of 
gravitation,  which  extends  its  influence  through  all  the  ce¬ 
lestial  orbs,  has  a  tendency,  in  the  course  of  ages,  to  draw 
together  all  the  spacious  globes  in  the  universe,  and  to  con¬ 
dense  them  into  one  solid  mass ;  and,  were  it  not  for  the 
counteracting  and  sustaining  hand  of  God,  this  effect,  at 
some  distant  period  in  duration,  would  inevitably  take 
place,  and  creation  be  reduced  to  one  vast  and  frightful 
ruin.  Many  of  the  stars  are  ascertained  to  be  subjected  to 
periodical  changes,  varying  their  lustre,  and  appearing  and 
disappearing  at  certain  intervals;  while  others,  which  for¬ 
merly  shone  with  superior  brilliancy,  have  gradually  disap¬ 
peared,  and  their  place  in  the  heavens  is  no  longer  to  be 
found.  Other  stars,  unknown  to  the  ancients  and  to  pre¬ 
ceding  observers,  have  made  their  appearance  in  modern 
times:  and  various  nebulous  spots,  in  the  distant  regions  of 
space  appear  to  be  increasing  both  in  lustre  and  extent. 
Tfyese,  and  many  other  similar  facts,  indicate  changes  and 
revolutions  as  great,  and  even  much  greater  than  those 
which  are  predicted  to  befall  the  earth  when  its  atmosphere 
shall  be  dissolved,  its  “  elements  melt  with  fervent  heat,” 
and  a  new  world  arise  out  of  its  ruins.  It  is  probable,  that, 
in  the  lapse  of  infinite  duration,  all  the  systems  which  now 
exist,  some  at  one  period  and  some  at  another,  will  undergo 
changes  and  transformations  which  will  astonish  the  intelli¬ 
gent  creation,  and  open  new  and  sublimer  scenes  of  Divine 
operation  to  an  admiring  universe.  But  such  changes  will 
be  altogether  different  from  annihilation  or  utter  destruc¬ 
tion — altogether  different  from  the  ideas  embodied  in  the 
language  of  poets,  when  they  tell  us  that  “  not  one  atom 
shall  be  left  in  the  mighty  void,”  and  that  “earth  and  firma- 
mentwillba  sought  in  vain.”  Those  stars  which  appeared, 
the  one  in  1572, 'and  the  other  in  1604,  which  shone  with  a 
brightness  superior  to  Venus,  and  afterwards  disappeared. 


140 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


we  have  no  reason  to  believe,  are  blotted  out  of  creation. 
They  may  either  have  been  changed,  from  flaming  suns,  to 
opaque  globes  like  the  planets,  and  may  be  still  existing  in 
the  same  region  of  space;  or  they  may  have  been  carried 
forward  with  a  rapid  motion,  to  a  region  of  the  universe 
altogether  beyond  the  utmost  limits  of  our  vision,  or  some 
other  transformation,  beyond  the  reach  of  human  concep¬ 
tion,  may  have  been  effected.  For  the  annihilation  of  mat¬ 
ter  appears  to  form  no  part  of  the  plan  of  the  Creator’s 
arrangements  ;  at  least,  we  have  no  proof  of  it,  in  any  one 
instance,  and  the  very  idea  of  it  seems  to  imply  an  inconsis¬ 
tency,  which  is  repugnant  to  what  we  already  know  of  the 
Divine  character  and  operations. 

Such  changes,  then,  so  far  from  diminishing  the  visible 
glory  of  the  universe,  will  present  to  the  view  of  the  intelli¬ 
gent  creation  a  greater  variety  of  sublime  scenery  than  if 
all  things  “continued  as  they  were  from  the- beginning  of 
the  creation,”  and  will  exhibit  the  attributes  of  the  Almighty 
in  all  their  varied  aspects  and  diversified  modes  of  opera 
tion.  While  they  demonstrate  the  mutable  nature  of  created 
beings,  and  the  immutability  of  the  Creator,  they  will  en¬ 
liven  the  scenes  of  the  universe,  and  excite  the  admiration 
and  praises  of  countless  mulitudes  of  enraptured  intelli 
gences. 

From  the  considerations  now  stated,  it  will  follow,  tha< 
the  various  relations  which  now  subsist  among  the  grea1 
bodies  which  compose  the  universe,  will  not  be  materially 
altered  by  any  changes  or  revolutions  which  may  take  plac« 
in  our  terrestrial  sphere:  nor  will  the  general  aspect  ol 
creation  be  sensibly  altered  by  any  changes  that  may  occa 
sionally  happen  among  the  celestial  luminaries.  Whatever 
may  be  the  nature  of  such  changes,  or  however  important 
they  may  be  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  systems  in  which  they 
happen,  they  bear  no  sensible  proportion  to  the  whole 
fabric  of  the  universe.  Though  stars  have,  at  different 
periods  disappeared  from  the  visible  concave  of  the  firma 
ment,  and  have,  doubtless  undergone  amazing  revolutions, 
yet  the  general  appearance  of  the  heavens  in  all  ages  has 
been  nearly  the  same,  and  will  probably  continue  so  for  an 
indefinite  lapse  of  ages  yet  to  come.  Although  our  earth 
were  just  now  transported  to  a  point  of  space  a  hundred 
thousand  millions  of  miles  beyond  the  sphere  we  presently 
occupy,  the  general  aspect  and  the  relative  positions  of  the 
starry  orbs,  and  the  figures  of  the  different  constellations, 


GENERAL  RELATION'S  OF  THE  UNIVERSE.  14l 

would  appear,  on  the  whole,  the  same  as  they  now  do  when 
we  lift  our  eyes  to  the  nocturnal  sky.  The  constellations 
of  Orion  and  Charles'  Wain ,  for  example,  would  present 
the  same  shape,  the  same  number  of  stars,  and  the  same 
relation  to  neighbouring  constellations,  when  viewed  from 
a  region  1,000,900,000,000,000*  of  miles  distant  from  the 
earth,  as  they  now  do  from  the  sphere  in  which  we  are 
.placed.f — Extension,  magnitude,  relative  position,  attrac¬ 
tion,  gravitation,  central  forces,  rectilineal  and  circular  mo¬ 
tions,  and  other  properties  and  relations  of  matter,  will  still 
subsist  in  the  universe,  after  we  are  transported  to  another 
state  and  to  a  different  region  \ — and,  consequently,  the  sci¬ 
ences  founded  on  the  various  combinations  of  these  proper¬ 
ties  and  of  the  laws  which  govern  them,  will  be  cultivated 
by  intelligent  beings,  and  carried  forward  to  that  measure 
of  perfection  which  they  cannot  attain  in  the  present  state, 
unless  we  suppose,  what  is  evidently  absurd  and  contrary  to 
Scripture,  that  our  knowledge  will  he  more  limited  in  the 
future,  than  in  the  present  world. 

For  example,  the  laws  which  direct  the  motions  of  falling 
bodies,  the  appearances  produced  by  bodies  in  the  heavens 
moving  with  different  degrees  of  velocity,  the  apparent  mo¬ 
tions  of  the  sun  and  of  the  starry  heavens,  and  the  general 
principles  of  geography  and  astronomy,  on  the  planet  Jupi¬ 
ter,  or  any  other  similar  globe,  with  the  exception  of  a  few 
local  modifications,  are  materially  the  same  as  on  the  surface 
of  the  earth, — which  is  evident  from  the  consideration  of 
his  spheroidal  figure,  his  diurnal  and  annual  motions,  and 
from  the  consideration  that  gravitation  is  regulated  by  the 
same  general  laws  on  that  body,  and  on  similar  globes,  as 
on  the  surface  of  the  earth  or  the  moon. — The  laws  of 
vision ,  and  the  nature  and  properties  of  light  and  colours , 

*  That  is  a  thousand  billions;  a  billion  being  equal  to  ten  hundred 
thousand  millions. 

t  This  will  appear  quite  evident  to  any  one  who  considers  the  im¬ 
mense  distance  of  the  stars  from  the  earth  and  from  one  another.  We 
know,  by  experience,  that  a  change  of  place  equal  to  190  millions  of 
miles,  or  the  diametar  of  the  earth's  annual  orbit  produces  no  sensi¬ 
ble  difference  in  the  appearance  of  the  starry  heavens,  and  it  is  certain 
that  if  this  distance  were  multiplied  by  ten  hundred  thousand,  the 
case  would  be  nearly  the  same.  The  nearest  star  is,  at  least,  20  bil 
lions  of  miles  distant,  and  remoter  stars  several  thousands  of  billions ; 
and  therefore,  the  relative  positions  of  bodies  so  widely  dispersed  from 
each  other,  would  not  be  sensibly  altered  by  a  change  of  place  equal 
in  extent  to  a  thousand  billions  of  miles. 


142 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


are  essentially  the  same  throughout  all  that  portion  of  the 
universe  which  lies  within  the  sphere  of  our  observation; 
and  we  have  no  reason  to  believe,  that  the  general  laws  of 
the  universe  will  be  unhinged,  for  the  sake  of  man,  or  on 
account  ol  any  changes  that  happen  in  his  present  abode, 
or  in  reference  to  his  future  destination.  For,  to  use  the 
words  of  a  late  eminent  Scottish  philosopher,  “The  light 
by  which  the  fixed  stars  are  seen,  is  the  same  with  thatlby 
which  we  behold  the  sun  and  his  attending  planets.  It 
moves  with  the  same  velocity,  as  we  observe  by  comparing 
the  aberrations  of  the  fixed  stars  with  . the  eclipses  of  Jupi¬ 
ter’s  satellites.  It  is  refracted  and  reflected  by  the  same 
laws.  It  consists  of  the  satne  colours.  No  opinion,  there¬ 
fore,  can  be  formed  of  the  solar  light  which  must  not  also 
be  adopted  with  respect  to  the  light  of  the  fixed  stars.  The 
medium  of  vision  must  be  acted  on  in  the  same  manner  by 
both,  whether  we  suppose  it  the  undulations  of  an  ether,  or 
the  emission  of  matter  from  the  luminous  body.”  From 
these  facts  we  may  conclude,  that  the  general  and  funda¬ 
mental  principles  of  the  science  of  Optics  are  recognised 
and  acted  upon  in  the  remotest  regions  which  the  telescope 
has  explored,  and  form  a  portion  of  that  knowledge  which  is 
possessed  by  the  intelligences  which  occupy  those  distant 
provinces  of  the  Creator’s  empire — always,  however,  making 
proper  allowances  for  those  local  varieties  and  modifica¬ 
tions,  which  must  produce  an  infinite  diversity  of  scenery 
throughout  the  universe,  although  the  same  general  laws 
operate  throughout  the  whole. 

What  has  been  now  stated  in  reference  to  light,  gravita¬ 
tion,  and  other  affections  of  matter,  might  be  extended  to 
various  other  properties,  and  to  the  sciences  which  have 
been  founded  upon  them  ;  such  as,  the  pressure  and  motions 
of  fluids,  the  properties  of  gaseous  bodies,  the  phenomena 
of  electricity  and  magnetism,  and  all  those  affinities,  decom¬ 
positions  and  changes,  which  are  the  objects  of  chemical 
research.  For,  in  a  material  fabric,  in  whatever  portion  of 
space  it  may  be  placed,  there  must,  from  the  very  nature  of 
things,  be  a  diversity  of  objects  for  the  investigation  of  the 
naturalist,  the  chemist,  and  the  philosopher,  in  which  the 
wisdom  and  goodness  of  the  Deity  will  always  be  displayed. 
Every  system  of  matter,  wherever  existing  in  infinite  space, 
has  a  determinate  size  and  figure  ;  it  is  composed  of  an  in¬ 
finite  number  of  atoms,  variously  modified  and  arranged  ;  it 
has  certain  diversities  ol  surface  and  internal  arrangement ; 

O  9 


ARITHMETIC. 


143 


it  is  susceptible  of  certain  motions  ;  it  stands  in  certain  re¬ 
lations  to  surrounding  bodies,  and  it  is  destined  to  accom¬ 
plish  some  wise  designs  corresponding  to  the  eternal  plan  of 
the  infinite  Creator.  There  is  no  portion  of  organized  mat¬ 
ter  now  existing,  or  which  may  hereafter  exist,  but  which 
must  be  considered  in  these  and  similar  points  of  view 
Now,  the  object  of  every  rational  intelligence,  whether  de¬ 
signated  by  the  appellations  of  philosopher,  astronomer,  or 
chemist,  when  contemplating  any  material  system,  is, 
ought  to  be,  to  trace  the  various  properties  and  arrangements 
which  exist  in  that  system,  in  order  to  perceive  the  intelli¬ 
gence,  wisdom,  and  benevolence  that  appear  in  its  construc¬ 
tion,  and  thus  to  acquire  a  more  correct  and  comprehensive 
view  of  the  plans  and  perfections  of  his  Creator.  Bui  such 
contemplations  necessarily  suppose,  the  cultivation  of  those 
sciences  which  will  enable  him  to  make  such  investigations 
with  spirit  and  effect,  without  which  he  would  be  unable  to 
trace  either  the  qualities  and  relations  of  material  objects, 
or  to  perceive  the  admirable  designs  of  the  all-wise  Creator 
in  the  works  which  his  Almighty  power  has  produced. 


SCIENCES  WHICH  WILL  BE  CULTIVATED  IN  A  FUTURE 

STATE. 

In  order  to  illustrate  this  subject  a  little  farther,  I  shall 
offer  a  few  brief  remarks  on  some  of  those  sciences  which 
will  be  recognised  and  prosecuted  in  a  future  world. 

ARITHMETIC. 

Arithmetic,  or  the  knowledge  of  numbers,  and  their  va¬ 
rious  powers  and  combinations,  is  a  science  which  must  be 
understood  in  a  greater  or  less  degree  by  all  intelligent 
beings  wherever  existing,  without  some  knowledge  of  which, 
no  extensive  progress  could  be  made  in  the  study  of  the 
works  of  God,  and  in  forming  just  conceptions  of  the  im¬ 
mense  number  and  variety  of  beings  which  exist  within  the 
limits  of  his  empire.  By  the  application  of  the  science  of 
numbers  the  bulk  of  the  earth  has  been  ascertained  ;  the 
distances  and  magnitudes  of  many  of  the  heavenly  bodies 
have  been  computed  ;  the  proportion  which  one  part  of  the 
universe  bears  to  another  has  been  determined;  the  incon¬ 
ceivable  minuteness  of  the  particles  of  ellluvia,  of  animal- 
culae,  and  of  the  atoms  of  light,  has  been  brought  within 
the  limits  of  our  contemplation  ;  and  we  have  been  enabled 


144 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


to  form  some  faint  conceptions  of  the  amazing  velocities 
with  which  the  celestial  orbs  are  carried  forward  in  their 
courses.  The  universe  presents  to  our  view  an  assemblage 
of  objects,  relations,  and  movements  calculated  to  draw 
forth  into  exercise  all  the  knowledge  of  numbers  we  can 
possibly  acquire.  We  are  presented  with  magnitudes  so 
stupendous,  and  with  spaces  and  distances  so  vast,  that  the 
mind  is  obliged  to  summon  up  all  its  powers  of  calculation, 
ami  all  its  knowledge  of  proportions,  progressions,  and  equa¬ 
tions,  and  to  add  one  known  magnitude  to  another,  in  a  long 
mental  process,  before  it  can  approximate  to  any  thing  like 
a  well-defined  idea  of  such  sublime  and  expansive  objects  ; 
and,  after  all  its  mental  efi’orts,  computations  and  compari¬ 
sons.  it  is  frequently  under  the  necessity  of  resting  satisfied 
with  ideas  which  are  vague,  inaccurate,  and  obscyre.  With 
regard  to  the  multiplicity  and  variety  of  the  objects  which 
creation  contains,  our  present  knowledge  of  the  powers  of 
numbers  is  altogether  inadequate  to  convey  to  the  mind  any 
thing  approaching  to  a  distinct  and  comprehensive  concep¬ 
tion.  The  number  of  systems  in  the  heavens  which  lie 
within  the  range  of  our  telescopes,  is  reckoned  to  be  at  least 
a  hundred  millions  (100,000.000.)  In  the  regions  of  infinite 
space,  beyond  the  boundaries  of  all  these,  it  is  not  improba¬ 
ble,  that  ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand  millions  of  other 
systems  are  running  their  ample  rounds.  With  each  of 
these  systems,  it  is  probable,  that  at  least  a  hundred  worlds 
are  connected.*  Every  one  of  these  worlds  and  systems, 
we  have  reason  to  believe,  differs  from  another,  in  its  size, 
splendour,  and  internal  arrangements,  in  the  peculiar  beau¬ 
ties  and  sublimities  with  which  it  is  adorned,  and  in  the 
organization  and  capacities  of  the  beings  with  which  it  is, 
furnished.  The  immense  multitude  of  rational  beings  and 
other  existences  with  which  creation  is  replenished,  is  an 
idea  which  completely  overpowers  the  human  faculties,  and 
is  beyond  the  power  of  our  arithmetical  notation  to  express. 
Even  the  multiplicity  of  objects  in  one  world  or  system  is 
beyond  our  distinct  conception.  How  very  feeble  and  im¬ 
perfect  conceptions  have  we  attained  of  the  immensity  of 
radiations  of  light  incessantly  emitted  from  the  sun  and 
falling  upon  our  globe,  and  of  the  innumerable  crossings 

*  With  the  solar  system  to  which  wc  belong’,  there  are  connected 
more  than  a  hundred  globes  of  different  sizes,  if  wo  take  into  account 
the  planets  both  primary  and  secondary,  and  likewise  the  cornels. 


ARITHMETIC. 


145 


and  re-crossings  of  these  rays  from  every  object  around,  in 
order  to  produce  vision  to  every  beholder  !  of  the  incalcu¬ 
lable  myriads  of  invisible  animalculae  which  swim  in  the 
waters,  and  fly  the  air,  and  pervade  every  department  of 
nature  ;  of  the  particles  of  vapour  which  float  in  the  atmos¬ 
phere,  and  of  the  drops  of  water  contained  in  the  caverns 
of  the  ocean  !  of  the  many  millions  of  individuals  belonging 
to  every  species  of  vegetables,  of  which  50,000  different 
species  have  already  been  discovered,  and  of  the  number  of 
trees,  shrubs,  flowers,  and  plants  of  every  description  which 
have  flourished  since  the  creation  !  of  the  countless  myriads 
ot  the  lower  animals,  and  of  the  human  species,  which  have 
been  brought  into  existence  since  the  commencement  of 
time,  and  of  those  which  are  yet  to  appear  in  regular  suc¬ 
cession  till  time  shall  be  no  more  !  of  the  immense  variety 
of  movements,  adjustments,  and  adaptations  connected  with 
the  structure  of  an  animal  body,  of  which  fourteen  thousand 
may  be  reckoned  as  belonging  to  the  system  of  bones  and 
muscles  comprised  in  the  human  frame,  besides  a  distinct 
variety  of  as  numerous  adaptations  in  each  of  the  60,000 
different  species  of  animals  which  are  already  known  to 
exist !  of  the  countless  globules  contained  in  the  eyes  of 
the  numerous  tribes  of  beetles,  flies,  butterflies,  and  other 
insects,  of  which  27,000  have  been  counted  in  a  single  eye  ! 
And,  if  the  multiplicity  of  objects  in  one  world  overwhelms 
our  powers  of  conception  and  computation,  how  much  more 
the  number  and  variety  of  beings  and  operations  connected 
with  the  economy  of  millions  of  worlds  !  No  finite  intelli¬ 
gence,  without  a  profound  knowledge  of  numbers  in  al! 
their  various  combinations,  can  form  even  a  rude  conception 
of  the  diversified  scenes  of  the  universe;  and  yet,  without 
some  faint  conception  at  least,  of  such  objects,  the  perfec¬ 
tions  of  the  Creator  and  the  glories  of  his  kingdom  cannot 
be  appreciated. 

It  is  evident,  therefore,  that  superior  intelligences,  such 
as  angels,  and  redeemed  men  in  a  future  state,  must  have 
their  attention  directed  to  the  science  of  numbers,  unless 
we  suppose,  what  is  contrary  to  Scripture,  that  their  know¬ 
ledge  and  capacities  of  intellect  will  be  more  limited  than 
ours  are  it  the  present  state.  They  may  not  stand  in  need 
of  the  aids  of  any  thing  similar  to  slates,  pencils,  or  numerical 
characters,  to  direct  them  in  their  computations,  or  to  give 
permanency  to  the  results  of  their  arithmetical  processes. 
The  various  steps  of  their  calculations  may  be  carried  for- 

13 


146 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


ward  with  inconceivable  rapidity,  by  a  mental  process  which 
will  lead  to  unerring  certainty  ;  but  the  same  general  prin¬ 
ciples  on  which  we  proceed  in  our  notations  and  calculations, 
must,  from  the  nature  of  things,  be  recognised  in  all  their 
numerical  processes  and  sublime  investigations. 

The  Scriptures  occasionally  give  us  some  intimations  of 
objects  and  scenes  calculated  to  exercise  the  numerical 
powers  of  the  heavenly  inhabitants.  When  Daniel  beheld 
the  vision  of  the  “  Ancient  of  Days”  sitting  on  his  throne,  a 
numerous  retinue  of  glorious  beings  appeared  in  his  train  to 
augment  the  grandeur  of  the  scene.  “Thousand  thousands 
ministered  unto  him,  and  ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand 
stood  before  him.”  We  are  told  in  the  sixty-eighth  Psalm, 
that  “  the  chariots  of  God  are  twenty  thousand,  even  many 
tnousands  of  angels ;”  and  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  we 
read  of  “  an  innumerable  company  of  angels.”  The  Apostle 
John,  when  narrating  his  visions  of  the  celestial  world,  tells 
us,  that  he  “  beheld  and  heard  the  voice  of  many  angels 
round  about  the  throne,  and  the  number  of  them  was  ten 
thousand  times  ten  thousand,  and  thousands  of  thousands.” 
And  again,  “  After  this  I  beheld,  and,  lo,  a  great  multitude 
which  no  man  could  number,  of  all  nations  and  kindreds,  and 
people,  and  tongues — and  all  the  angels  stood  round  about 
the  throne,  and  fell  on  their  faces  and  worshipped  God.” 
These  expressions  are  the  strongest  which  the  inspired 
writersmake  use  of  in  order  to  express  a  countless  multitude 
of  objects  ;  and  they  lead  us  to  conclude,  that,  in  the  heaven¬ 
ly  world,  vast  assemblages  of  intelligent  beings  will  be  occa¬ 
sionally  presented  to  the  view;  and  consequently,  a  count¬ 
less  variety  of  scenes,  objects,  and  circumstances  connected 
with  their  persons,  stations,  and  employments.  And,  there¬ 
fore,  if  celestial  beings  were  not  familiarized  with  numerical 
calculations  and  proportions,  such  scenes,  instead  of  being 
contemplated  with  intelligence  and  rational  admira:ion, 
would  confound  the  intellect,  and  produce  an  effect  similar 
to  that  which  is  felt  by  a  savage  when  he  beholds,  for  the 
first  time,  some  of  the  splendid  scenes  of  civilized  life. 

It  is  owing,  in  a  great  measure,  to  ignorance  of  the  pow 
ers  of  numbers,  and  the  mode  of  applying  them,  that  wo 
find  it  impossible  to  convey  any  distinct  ideas  of  the  veloci¬ 
ties,.  distances,  and  magnitudes  of  the  heavenly  bodies  to 
the  illiterate  ranks  of  mankind.  We  are  told  by  travellers, 
that  there  are  some  untutored  tribes  whose  knowledge  of 
numbers  is  so  limited,  that  they  cannot  count  beyond  a 


MATHEMATICS. 


147 


hundred,  and  that  there  are  others  whose  notation  is  limited 
to  twenty,  or  the  number  of  fingers  and  toes  on  their  hands 
and  feet.  While  such  ignorance  of  numbers  exists,  it  is 
quite  evident,  that  such  persons  are  entirely  unqualified  for 
surveying  with  an  eye  of  intelligence,  the  grand  and  diver¬ 
sified  operations  of  the  Creator,  and  for  appreciating  their 
number  and  magnificence.  Even  the  most  cultivated  minds, 
from  an  imperfect  knowledge  of  this  subject,  find  it  difficult  to 
form  distinct  conceptions  of  the  plans  of  the  Creator,  and  of 
the  various  relations  which  subsist  in  the  universe.  After 
familiarizing  our  minds  to  the  classification  and  arrangement 
of  numbers,  we  can  form  a  tolerable  notion  of  a  thousand,  or 
even  of  a  hundred  thousand;  butitis  questionable,  whether  we 
have  any  distinct  and  well-defined  idea  of  a  million,  or  ten 
hundred  thousand.  And  if  our  conceptions  of  such  a  number 
be  imperfect,  how  exceedingly  vague  must  be  our  ideas  of  a 
thousand  millions,  of  billions,  trillions,  and  quar trillions, 
when  used  to  express  the  number  or  distances  of  the  heavenly 
bodies  ? — It  is  evident,  then,  that  beings  of  a  superior  order,  or 
in  a  higher  state  of  existence,  must  have  a  more  profound  and 
comprehensive  knowledge  of  numbers  than  man:  in  conse¬ 
quence  of  which  they  are  enabled  to  survey  the  universe 
with  more  intelligence,  and  to  form  more  distinct  and  ample 
conceptions  of  the  designs  and  operations  of  infinite  wisdom 
and  omnipotence, 

MATHEMATICS, 

Mathematics,  including  geometry,  trignometry,  conic  sec¬ 
tions,  and  other  branches,  is  another  department  of  science 
which,  will  be  recognised  by  superior  beings  in  a  future 
state.  It  is  the  science  of  Quantity,  and  treats  of  magni¬ 
tude,  or  local  extension,  as  lines,  surfaces,  solids,  &c.  The 
demonstrated  truths  of  this  science  are  eternal  and  un¬ 
changeable,  and  are  applicable  to  the  circumstances  of  all 
worlds,  wherever  they  may  exist,  and  in  every  period  of 
duration,  so  long  as  the  material  fabric  of  the  universe  re¬ 
mains.  Guided  by  the  truths  which  this  science  unfolds  and 
demonstrates,  we  have  been  enabled  to  determine  the  figure 
and  dimensions  of  the  earth,  to  direct  our  course  from  one 
continent  to  another  across  the  pathless  deep,  to  ascertain 
the  distance  and  magnitude  of  the  sun  and  planets,  and  the 
laws  which  the  Almighty  has  ordained  for  preserving  their 
order  and  directing  them  in  their  movements’,  and  have 
been  led  to  form  more  correct  ideas  of  the  immense  distan- 


148  THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 

cos  and  the  vast  extent  of  the  starry  heavens.  It  was  ow¬ 
ing  to  his  profound  knowledge  of  the  truths  of  this  science 
that  the  illustrious  Sir  Isaac  Newton  determined  the  pro¬ 
perties  and  the  composition  of  light,  the  causes  of  the  alter¬ 
nate  movements  of  the  ocean,  and  the  mechanism  of  the 
planetary  system;  and  expanded  our  views  of  the  gran¬ 
deur  of  the  universe  and  the  perfections  of  its  Almighty 
Contriver. 

Some  of  the  truths  of  this  science  may  appear,  to  a 
superficial  thinker,  as  extremely  trivial,  and  almost  unwor¬ 
thy  of  regard.  The  properties  of  a  triangle,  such  as,  “that 
the  square  of  the  hypotenuse  of  a  right-angled  triangle  is 
equal  to  the  squares  of  the  other  two  sides” — “tha-tthe 
three  angles  of  a  triangle  are  equal  to  two  right  angles” — 
and  “that  the  sides  of  a  plane  triangle  are  to  one  another 
as  the  sines  of  the  angles  opposite  to  them” — may  appear  to 
some  minds  as  more  curious  than  useful,  and  scarcely  de¬ 
serving  the  least  attention.  Yet  these  truths,  when  applied 
to  the  relations  of  the  universe,  and  traced  to  all  their  legiti¬ 
mate  consequences,  have  led  to  the  most  important  and 
sublime  results.  On  the  ground  of  such  truths,  we  have 
ascertained,  that  the  moon  is  240,000  miles  distant  from  the 
earth,  that  the  sun  is  thirteen  hundred  thousand  times  larger 
than  our  globe,  that  the  planet  Herschel  is  removed  to  the 
distance  of  eighteen  hundred  millions  of  miles,  and  that  the 
nearest  star  is  at  least  two  hundred  thousand  times  farther 
from  us  than  the  sun.  When  the  length  of  any  one  side  of 
a  triangle  is  known,  however  large  that  triangle  may  be,  and 
the  quantity  of  its  angles  determined,  the  length  of  the  other 
sides  can  easily  be  found :  we  know  the  extent  of  the  earth’s 
diameter;  we  can  ascertain  under  what  angle  that  diameter 
appears  at  the  moon,  and  from  these  data  we  can,  by  an  easy 
calculation,  determine  the  length  of  any  of  the  other  two 
sides  of  this  triangle,  which  gives  the  distance  of  the 
moon. 

We  have  every  reason  to  conclude,  that  angels  and  other 
superior  intelligences  proceed  on  the  same  general  principles 
in  estimating  the  distances  and  magnitudes  of  the  great 
bodies  of  the  universe.  They  may  not,  indeed,  require  to 
resort  to  the  same  tedious  calculations,  nor  to  the  same 
instruments  and  geometrical  schemes  which  we  are  obliged 
to  use.  Without  such  aids,  they  may  arrive  at  the  proper 
results  with  unerring  precision,  and  their  computations  may 
be  performed  almost  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye;  and  while 


MATHEMATICS. 


140 


we  are  obliged  to  confine  our  calculations  to  lines  and  tri¬ 
angles  of  only  a  few  thousands  or  millions  of  miles  in  ex¬ 
tent  they  may  be  enabled  to  form  tringles  of  inconceivable 
extent,  on  base  lines  of  several  thousands  of4rillions  of  miles 
in  length.  We  are  informed,  in  the  book  of  Daniel,  that 
“  the  angel  Gabriel,  being  commanded  to  fly  swiftly  from 
the  celestial  regions,  reached  the  prophet  about  the  time  of 
the  evening  sacrifice.”  This  fact  implies,  not  only  that 
angelic  beings  are  endued  with  powers  of  rapid  motion,  but 
that  they  are  intimately  acquainted  with  the  directions,  dis¬ 
tances,  and  positions  of  the  bodies  which  compose  the  ma¬ 
terial  universe.  This  heavenly  messenger,  having  been 
previously  stationed  far  beyond  the  limits  of  our  planetary 
system,  had  to  shape  his  course  in  that  direction,  to  dis¬ 
criminate  the  orbit  of  the  earth  from  the  orbits  of  the  other 
planets,  and  the  particular  part  of  its  orbit  in  which  it  was 
then  moving;  and  having  arrived  at  the  confines  of  our 
atmosphere,  he  required  to  discriminate  the  particular  re¬ 
gion  in  which  Daniel  resided,  and  to  direct  his  flight  to  the 
house  in  which  he  was  offering  up  his  devotions. — Now, 
since  angels  are  neither  omniscient  nor  omnipresent,  as 
they  are  limited  beings,  possessed  of  rational  faculties,  and 
as  it  is  probable,  are  invested  with  bodies,  or  fine  material 
vehicles,* — they  must  be  guided  in  such  excursions  by 
their  reasoning  powers,  and  the  faculty  of  rapid  motion 
with  which  they  are  endued.  Such  excursions  imply  the 
recognition  of  certain  mathematical  principles,  and  I  have 
already  had  occasion  to  notice,  that  these  principles  are 
applicable  throughout  every  part  of  the  universe,  and  must 
be  recognised,  more  or  less,  by  all  intelligent  beings. 

The  Creator  himself  has  laid  the  foundation  of  the  mathe¬ 
matical  sciences.  His  works  consist  of  globes  and  sphe- 
riods  of  all  different  dimensions,  and  of  immense  concen¬ 
tric  rings  revolving  with  a  rapid  motion.  These  globes 
are  carried  round  different  centres,  some  of  them  in  circles, 
some  in  ellipses,  and  others  in  long  eccentric  curves.  Being 
impelled  in  their  courses  by  different  degrees  of  velocity, 
their  real  motions  cannot  be  traced,  nor  the  beautiful  sim¬ 
plicity  and  harmony  of  the  different  systems  made  apparent, 
without  the  application  of  mathematical  investigations.  To 
an  observer  untutored  in  this  science,  many  of  the  celestial 

*  The  Author  will  afterwards  have  an  opportunity  of  illustrating 
this  position,  in  Part  III.  of  this  work. 

13* 


150 


THE  miLOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


motions  would  appear  to  display  inextricable  confusion, 
and  lead  him  to  conclude,  that  the  Framer  of  the  universe 
was  deficient  in  wisdom  and  intelligent  design. — The  prin 
ciples  of  mathematics  are  also  exhibited  in°  the  numerous 
aru,  diversified  figures  into  which  diamonds,  crystals,  salts, 
and  other  bodies,  are  formed  ;  in  the  hexagonal  cells  of 
oees,  wasps,  and  hornets,  in  the  polygons  and  parallel  lines 
which  enter  into  the  construction  of  a  spider’s  web,  and  in 
many  other  objects  in  nature.— Now,  since  God  has  exhi¬ 
bited  the  elements  of  this  science  before  us  in  his  works  ; 
since  he  has  endued  us  with  rational  faculties  to  appreciate 
and  apply  these  elements  to  useful  investigations  ;  and  since 
!ns  wlS(,om  and  intelligence,  and  the  beauty  and  order  of 
nis  works,  cannot  be  fully  understood  without  such  inves¬ 
tigations,— it  is  evident,  that  he  must  have  intended,  that 
men  should  be  occasionally  exercised  in  such  studies  ;  in 
order  to  perceive  the  depths  of  his  wisdom,  and  the  admi- 
rable  simplicity  and  harmony  of  his  diversified  operations. 

nd  as  the  applications  of  this  science  are  extremely  limit¬ 
ed  in  the  present  world,  its  more  extensive  applications, 
like  those  of  many  other  branches  of  knowledge,  must  be 
considered  as  reserved  for  the  life  to  come.— To  suppose, 
therefore,  that  such  studies  will  be  abandoned,  aiuf  such 

nni  fU  f  !i?b  lter^ted  ln  a  fUtUre  State’  WOuld  be  to  sup- 
pose,  that  the  works  of  God  will  not  be  contemplated  in 

at  state,  and  that  redeemed  men  in  the  heavenly  world 

Hn !  °S^a  -Part  °f-  t  lClr  ratlonal  Acuities,  and  remain  infe- 
noi  in  their  acquirements  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth 
even  in  their  present  imperfect  and  degraded  condition.  * 

0 

astronomy. 

Astronomy  is  another  science  which  will  occupy  the  atten- 
tion  of  pure  intelligences  in  the  future  world.  The  object 

or  11 u  frdeter,mine  the  distances  and  magnitudes 

o  the  heavenly  bodies,  the  form  of  the  orbits  they  describe, 

be  laws  by  which  their  motions  are  directed,  and  the  nature 
ana  destination  of  the  various  luminous  and  opaque  crlobes 
of  which  the  universe  appears  to  be  compost  It  i  the 
most  noble  and  sublime  of  all  the  sciences  and  presents  to 
our  view  the  most  astonishing  and  magnificent  objects 
whether  we  consider  their  immense  magnitude,  the  splen¬ 
dour  of  their  appearance,  the  vast  spaces  which  surround 
them,  the  magnificent  apparatus  witli  which  some  of  them 
aie  encompassed,  the  rapidity  of  their  motions,  or  the  dis- 


ASTRONOMY. 


151 


play  they  afford  of  the  omnipotent  energy  and  the  intelli¬ 
gence  of  the  Creator.  In  consequence  of  the  cultivation  of 
this  science,  our  views  of  the  extent  of  creation,  and  of 
the  sublime  scenery  it  unfolds,  are  expanded  far  beyond 
what  former  ages  could  have  conceived.  From  the  disco- 
verios  of  astronomy,  it  appears,  that  our  earth  is  but  as  a 
point  in  the  immensity  of  the  universe — that  there  are 
worlds  a  thousand  times  larger,  enlightened  by  the  same  sun 
which  “  rules  our  day” — that  the  sun  himself  is  an  immense 
luminous  world,  whose  circumference  would  enclose  more 
than  twelve  hundred  thousand  globes  as  large  as  ours — < 
that  the  earth  and  its  inhabitants  are  carried  forward  through 
the  regions  of  space,  at  the  rate  of  a  thousand  miles  every 
minute — that  motions  exist  in  the  great  bodies  of  the  uni¬ 
verse,  the  force  and  rapidity  of  which  astonish  and  over¬ 
power  the  imagination — and  that  beyond  the  sphere  of  the 
sun  and  planets,  creation  is  replenished  with  millions  of  lu¬ 
minous  globes,  scattered  over  immense  regions  to  which 
the  human  mind  can  assign  no  boundaries. 

These  objects  present  an  immense  field  for  the  contem¬ 
plation  of  every  class  of  moral  intelligences,  and  a  bright 
mirror  in  which  they  will  behold  the  reflection  of  the  Di¬ 
vine  attributes.  Of  this  vast  universe,  how  small  a  portion 
has  yet  been  unveiled  to  our  view  !  With  respect  to  the 
bodies  which  compose  our  planetary  system,  we  know  only 
a  few  general  facts  and  relations.  In  regard  to  the  fixed 
stars,  we  have  acquired  little  more  than  a  few  rude  concep¬ 
tions  of  their  immense  distance  and  magnitudes.  In  rela¬ 
tion  to  the  comets ,  we  only  know  that  they  move  in  long 
eccentric  orbits,  that  they  are  impelled  in  their  courses  with 
immense  velocity,  and  appear  and  disappear  in  uncertain 
periods  of  time.  Of  the  numerous  systems  into  which  the 
stars  are  arranged,  of  the  motions  peculiar  to  each  system, 
of  the  relations  which  these  motions  have  to  the  whole  uni¬ 
verse  as  one  vast  machine,  of  the  nature  and  arrangement  of 
the  numerous  nebulae  which  are  scattered  throughout  the 
distant  regions  of  space;  of  the  worlds  which  are  connected 
with  the  starry  orbs ;  of  the  various  orders  of  beings  which 
people  them  ;  of  the  changes  and  revolutions  which  are 
taking  place  in  different  parts  of  the  universe,  of  the  new 
creations  which  are  starting  into  existence,  of  the  number 
of  opaque  globes  which  may  exist  in  every  region  of  space, 
of  the  distance  to  which  the  material  world  extends,  and  of 
the  various  dispensations  of  the  Almighty  towards  the  diver- 


152 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


sified  orders  of  intelligences  which  people  his  vast  empire 

we  remain  in  almost  profound  ignorance,  and  must  con¬ 
tinue  in  this  ignorance,  so  long  as  we  are  chained  down  to 
this  obscure  corner  of  creation.  There  will,  therefore,  be 
ample  scope  in  the  future  world  for  farther  researches  into 
this  subject,  and  for  enlarging  our  knowledge  of  those  glo¬ 
rious  scenes  which  are  at  present  so  far  removed  beyond  the 
limits  of  natural  vision,  and  the  sphere  of  human  investi¬ 
gation. 

The  heavens  constitute  the  principal  part  of  the  divine 
empire — compared  with  which  our  earth  is  but  as  an  atom, 
and  “all  nations  are  as  nothing,  and  are  accounted  to  Jeho¬ 
vah  as  less  than  nothing  and  vanity.”  Vast  as  this  world 
may  appear  to  the  frail  beings  that  inhabit  it,  it  probably 
ranks  among  the  smallest  globes  in  the  universe ;  but  al¬ 
though  it  were  twenty  thousand  times  more  spacious  than  it 
is,  it  would  be  only  as  a  grain  of  sand  when  compared  with 
the  immensity  of  creation,  and  all  the  events  that  have  pass¬ 
ed  over  its  inhabitants  as  only  a  few  of  those  ephemeral 
transactions  which  crowd  the  annals  of  eternity.  It  is 
throughout  the  boundless  regions  of  the  firmament  that  God 
is  chiefly  seen,  and  his  glory  contemplated  by  unnumbered 
intelligences.  It  is  there  that  the  moral  grandeur  of  his 
dispensations,  and  the  magnificence  of  his  works,  are  dis* 
played  in  all  their  variety  and  lustre  to  countless  orders  oi 
his  rational  offspring,  over  which  he  will  continue  eternally 
to  preside.  Hence  the  numerous  allusions  to  “the  hea¬ 
vens,”  by  the  inspired  writers,  when  the  majesty  of  God 
and  the  glory  of  his  dominions  are  intended  to  be  illustrated. 
“All  the  gods  of  the  nations  are  idols;  but  Jehovah  made 
the  heavens."  “  The  Lord  hath  prepared  his  throne  in  the 
heavens ,  and  his  kingdom  ruleth  over  all.”  “By  his  Spirit 
he  hath  garnished  the  heavens.”  “The  heavens  declare 
the  glory  of  Jehovah.”  “When  I  consider  thy  heavens, 
the  work  of  thy  fingers,  the  moon  and  the  stars,  which  thou 
hast  ordained — what  is  man,  that  thou  art  mindful  of  him  ? 
or  the  son  of  man,  that  thou  visitest  him?”  “The  heavensj 
even  the  heaven  of  heavens,  cannot  contain  thee.”  “  By 
the  word  of  Jehovah  were  the  heavens  made,  and  all  the 
host  of  them  by  the  spirit  of  his  mouth.”  “  The  heavens 
shall  declare  his  righteousness.”  “  Our  God  is  in  the  hea¬ 
vens,  he  natli  done  whatsoever  he  hath  pleased.”  “  The 
heavens  shall  declare  thy  wonders ,  O  Lord!"  “I  lift  up 
mine  eyes  to  thee,  O  thou  that  dwellest  in  the  heavens." 


ASTRONOMY. 


153 


“Th  us  saith  God  the  Lord,  he  that  created  the  heavens  and 
stretched  them  out.”  “  The  heavens  for  height  are  un¬ 
searchable.”  “  As  the  heaven  is  high  above  the  earth,  so 
great  is  his  mercy  toward  them  that  fear  him.”  He  is  '•'•the 
God  of  heaven, — he  rideth  on  the  heaven  of  heavens  which 
he  founded  of  old  ;  heaven  is  his  throne,  and  the  earth  his 
footstool.” — When  the  folly  of  idolaters  is  exposed,  when 
the  coming  of  Messiah  is  announced,  and  when  motives  are 
presented  to  invigorate  the  faith  and  hope  of  the  saints,  Je¬ 
hovah  is  represented  as  that  omnipotent  Being  who  “meteth 
out  the  heavens  with  a  span,  who  spreadeth  them  out  as  a 
curtain,  and  bringeth  forth  their  hosts  by  the  greatness  of 
his  might.”  “  Thus  saith  God  the  Lord,  he  that  created 
the  heavens  and  stretched  them  out — I  will  give  thee  for  a 
covenant  of  the  people,  for  a  light  of  the  Gentiles.”*  “  Thus 
saith  the  Lord  that  created  the  heavens — I  said  not  to  the 
seed  of  Jacob,  seek  ye  me  in  vain.”  &c.f — These,  and  hun¬ 
dreds  of  similar  passages,  evidently  imply,  that  we  ought  to 
contemplate  the  attributes  of  God  chiefly  in  relation  to  the 
display  which  is  given  of  them  in  the  firmament  of  his  pow¬ 
er — that  the  heavens  are  by  far  the  most  extensive  portion 
of  his  dominions — and  that  the  power  and  intelligence  dis¬ 
played  in  the  formation  and  arrangement  of  the  hosts  of 
heaven,  lay  a  sure  foundation  for  the  hope  and  joy,  and  the 
future  prospects  of  the  people  of  God. 

In  order  to  form  just  conceptions  of  the  beauty  and 
grandeur  of  the  heavens,  and  of  the  intelligence  of  Him 
who  arranged  their  numerous  hosts,  some  of  the  fundamen¬ 
tal  facts  and  principles  of  astronomy  require  to  be  under¬ 
stood  and  recognised.  The  order  of  the  bodies  which  com¬ 
pose  the  solar  system,  or  other  systems  which  exist  in  the 
universe — the  form  of  their  orbits,  their  proportional  dis¬ 
tances  and  periods  of  revolution — their  magnitudes,  rota¬ 
tions,  velocities,  and  the  various  phenomena  which  are 
observed  on  their  surfaces — the  arrangement  and  positions 
of  the  different  clusters  of  stars — of  the  stellar  and  planetary 
nebulae,  of  double,  triple,  and  variable  stars,  and  many  other 
general  facts,  require  to  be  known  before  the  mind  "can  re¬ 
ceive  farther  information  respecting  the  structure  of  the 
universe. — It  maybe  also  necessary,  even  in  a  higher  state 
of  existence,  to  be  acquainted  with  those  contrivances  or 
artificial  helps  by  which  very  distant  objects  may  be  brought 


*  Isa.  xliv.  5,  6. 


[  Isa.  xiv.  18,  19 


154 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


near  to  view.  We  know,  by  experience,  in  our  present 
state,  that,  by  means  of  telescopes,  millions  of  stars,  which 
the  unassisted  eye  cannot  discern,  are  brought  within  the 
sphere  of  our  observation,  and  numerous  other  splendid 
objects,  which  without  the  aid  of  these  instruments,  would 
have  been  altogether  concealed  from  our  view.  The  organs 
of  vision,  indeed,  of  the  redeemed  inhabitants  of  our  globe, 
after  the  resurrection,  there  is  every  reason  to  believe,  will 
be  capable  of  taking  in  a  much  more  extensive  range  of 
view  than  at  present.  They  may  be  endowed  with  quali¬ 
ties  which  will  enable  them  to  penetrate  into  the  depths  of 
space  far  beyond  the  reach  of  our  most  powerful  telescopes, 
and  to  perceive  with  distinctness,  objects  at  the  distance  of 
many  billions  m*les*  Still,  however,  they  may  require 
artificial  aids  to  their  natural  organs,  in  order  to  enable 
them  to  contemplate  objects  at  still  greater  distances.  And 
although  such  helps  to  natural  vision,  analogous  to  our  tele¬ 
scopes,  may  be  conceiv-ed  as  incomparably  superior  to  ours, 
yet  the  same  general  principles  must  be  recognised  in  their 
construction.  For,  as  has  been  already  noticed,  the  light 
which  emanates  from  the  most  distant  stars  consists  of  the 
same  colours,  and  is  refracted  and  reflected  by  the  same 
laws,  as  the  light  which  is  emitted  from  the  sun,  and  which 
il.uminatcs  our  terrestrial  abode  ;  and,  consequently,  must 
operate  on  the  organs  of  sentient  beings,  in  those  remote 
regions,  in  a  manner  similar  to  its  effects  on  the  eyes  of 
man. 

It  is  highly  probable,  that,  in  the  future  world,  a  considera¬ 
ble  portion  of  our  knowledge  respecting  the  distant  provin¬ 
ces  of  the  Divine  empire,  will  be  communicated  by  superior 
beings  who  have  visited  the  different  systems  dispersed 
through  the  universe,  and  have  acquired  information  re¬ 
specting  their  history,  and  their  physical  and  moral  scenery. 
W^e  learn  from  Scripture,  that  there  are  intelligences  who 
can  wing  their  way,  in  a  short  period  of  time,  from  one 
world  to  another.  Such  beings,  in  the  course  of  a  thousand 
centuries,  must  have  made  many  extensive  tours  through  the 
regions  of  creation,  and  acquired  a  comprehensive  know¬ 
ledge  of  the  most  striking  scenes  which  the  universe  dis¬ 
plays.  And,  since  they  have  occasionally  mingled  in  the 
society  of  men,  and  communicated  intelligence  from  heaven 
to  earth,  it  is  reasonable  to  believe,  that  they  will  have 
more  frequent  intercourse  with  redeemed  men  in  a  future 
state,  and  communicate  the  discoveries  they  have  made  re- 


ASTRONOMY. 


165 


specting  the  economy  and  grandeur  of  God’s  universal  em¬ 
pire.  But,  at  the  same  time,  it  ought  carefully  to  be  ob¬ 
served,  that  such  communications  would  neither  be  fully 
understood  nor  appreciated,  unless  the  mind  had  a  previoua 
acquaintance  with  the  leading  facts,  and  the  grand  outlines 
of  astronomical  science.  To  enter  into  the  spirit  of  those 
sublime  details  which  angels  or  archangels  might  communi¬ 
cate  respecting  other  systems  and  worlds,  the  mind  must  be 
prepared  by  a  knowledge  of  those  principles  which  have 
already  been  ascertained,  and  of  those  discoveries  which 
have  already  been  made  in  relation  to  the  system  of  the 
universe.  Suppose  a  group  of  the  native  tribes  of  New 
Holland,  or  Van  Diemen’s  Land,  were  assembled  for  the 
purpose  of  listening  to  a  detail  of  the  principal  discoveries 
which  modern  astronomers  have  made  in  the  heavens — it 
would  be  impossible  to  convey  to  their  minds  a  clear  con¬ 
ception  even  of  the  prominent  and  leading  facts  of  this 
science,  from  the  want  of  those  general  ideas  which  are 
previously  necessary  in  order  to  the  right  understanding  o-f 
such  communications.  Such  would  be  the  case  of  men  in 
a  luture  state,  in  regard  to  the  communications  of  angelic 
messengers  from  distant  worlds,  were  their  minds  not  im¬ 
bued  with  a  certain  portion  of  astronomical  knowledge. 
They  might  stare  and  wonder  at  some  of  the  facts  detailed; 
but  their  ideas  would  be  vague  and  confused,  and  they 
would  be  unable  to  form  clear  and  comprehensive  concep¬ 
tions  of  the  various  circumstances  connected  with  the  scenes 
described,  in  all  their  bearings,  aspects,  and  relations,  and 
ol  the  indications  they  afford  of  exquisite  skill  and  intelli¬ 
gent  design. 

As  the  objects  which  astronomy  explores  are  unlimited  in 
their  range,  they  will  afford  an  inexhaustible  subject  of 
study  and  contemplation  to  superior  beings,  and  to  mankind 
when  placed  in  a  higher  sphere  of  existence.  Astronomi¬ 
cal  science,  as  having  for  its  object  to  investigate  and  ex¬ 
plore  the  facts  and  relations  peculiar  to  all  the  great  bodies 
in  the  universe,  can  never  be  exhausted  ;  unless  we  suppose 
that  finite  minds  will  be  able,  at  some  future  period  in  dura¬ 
tion,  to  survey  and  to  comprehend  all  the  plans  and  opera¬ 
tions  of  the  infinite  Creator.  But  this  is  evidently  impossi¬ 
ble;  for,  “who  can  by  searching  find  out  God?  Who  can 
find  out  the  Almighty  to  perfection?”  After  millions  of 
centuries  have  run  their  rounds,  new  scenes  of  grandeur 
will  be  still  bursting  on  the  astonished  mind,  new  regions  of 


156 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTUKE  STATE. 


creation,  and  new  displays  of  divine  power  and  wisdom  will 
still  remain  to  be  explored;  and,  consequently,  the  science 
of  astronomy  will  never  arrive  at  absolute  perfection,  but 
will  be  in  a  progressive  course  of  improvement  through  all 
the  revolutions  of  eternity.  In  the  prosecution  of  such  in¬ 
vestigations,  and  in  the  contemplation  of  such  objects  as 
this  science  presents,  the  grand  aim  of  celestial  intelligen¬ 
ces  will  be*  to  increase  in  the  knowledge  and  the  love  of 
God;  and,  in  proportion  as  their  views  of  the  glories  oi 
his  empire  are  enlarged,  in  a  similar  proportion  will  their 
conceptions  of  his  boundless  attributes  be  expanded,  and 
their  praises  and  adorations  ascend  in  sublimer  strains  to 
Him  who  sits  upon  the  throne  of  the  universe,  who  alone  is 
“worthy  to  receive  glory,  honour,  and  powrer,”  from  every 
order  of  his  creatures. 

Since,  then,  it  appears,  that  astronomy  is  conversant 
about  objects  the  most  wonderful  and  sublime — since  these 
objects  tend  to  amplify  our  conceptions  of  the  Divine  attri¬ 
butes — since  a  clear  and  distinct  knowledge  of  these  objects 
cannot  be  attained  without  the  acquisition  of  a  certa'n  por¬ 
tion  of  astronomical  science — since  the  heavens  constitute 
the  principal  part  of  God’s  universal  empire — since  our 
present  views  of  the  magnificence  of  this  empire  are  so 
obscure  and  circumscribed — since  even  the  information  that 
may  be  communicated  on  this  subject,  by  other  intelligen¬ 
ces,  could  not  be  fully  understood  without  some  acquaintance 
with  the  principles  of  this  science — and  since  the  boundless 
scenes  it  unfolds  present  an  inexhaustible  subject  of  con¬ 
templation,  and  afford  motives  to  stimulate  all  holy  beings 
to  incessant  adoration — it  would  be  absurd  to  suppose  that 
renovated  men,  in  a  superior  state  of  existence,  will  remain 
in  ignorance  of  this  subject,  or  that  the  study  of  it  will  ever 
be  discontinued  while  eternity  endures. 

NATURAL  PHILOSOPHY. 

Natural  Philosophy  is  another  subject  which  will  doubt¬ 
less  engage  the  attention  of  regenerated  men  in  a  future 
state. 

The  object  of  this  science  is  to  describe  the  phenomena 
of  the  material  world,  to  explain  their  causes,  to  investi¬ 
gate  the  laws  by  which  the  Almighty  directs  the  operations 
of  nature,  and  to  trace  the  exquisite  skill  and  benevolent 
design  which  are  displayed  in  the  economy  of  the  universe- 
It  embraces  investigations  into  the  several  powers  and  pro- 


NATURAL  PHILOSOFHV. 


157 


perties,  qualities,  and  attributes,  motions  and  appearances, 
causes  and  effects,  of  all  the  bodies  of  which  we  are  sur¬ 
rounded,  and  which  are  ottvious  to  our  senses, — such  as 
light,  heat,  colours,  air,  water,  sounds,  echoes;  the  electri¬ 
cal  and  magnetical  fluids ;  hail,  rain,  snow,  dew,  thunder, 
lightning,  the  rainbow,  parhelia,  winds,  luminous,  and  fiery 
meteors,  the  Aurora  Borealis,  and  similar  objects  in  the 
system  of  nature. 

From  the  discoveries  of  experimental  philosophers,  we 
have  been  made  acquainted  with  a  variety  of  striking  facts 
and  agencies  in  the  system  of  the  universe,  which  display 
the  amazing  energies  of  the  Creator,  and  which  tend  to 
excite  our  admiration  of  the  depths  of  his  wisdom  and  in¬ 
telligence.  We  learn  that  the  light  emitted  from  the  sun 
and  other  luminous  bodies,  moves  with  a  velocity  equal  to 
200,000  miles  in  a  second  of  time — that  every  ray  of  white 
light  is  composed  of  all  the  colours  in  nature,  blended  in 
certain  proportions — that  the  immense  variety  of  shades 
of  colours  which  adorns  the  different  landscapes  of  the 
earth,  is  not  in  the  objects  themselves,  but  in  the  light  that 
fails  upon  them — and  that  thousands  of  millions  of  rays  are 
incessantly  flying  off  from  all  visible  objects,  crossing  and 
recrossing  each  other  in  an  infinity  of  directions,  and  yet 
conveying  to  every  eye  that  is  open  to  receive  them,  a  dis¬ 
tinct  picture  of  the  objects  whence  they  proceed.  We 
learn  that  the  atmosphere  which  surrounds  us  presses  our 
bodies  with  a  weight  equal  to  thirty  thousand  pounds,  that 
it  contains  the  principles  of  fire  and  flame — that,  in  one 
combination,  it  would  raise  our  animal  spirits  to  the  highest 
pitch  of  ecstasy,  and  in  another,  cause  our  immediate  de 
struction — that  it  is  capable  of  being  compressed  into  40,000 
times  less  space  than  it  naturally  occupies — and  that  the 
production  of  sound,  the  lives  of  animals,  and  the  growth 
of  vegetables  depend  upon  its  various  and  unceasing  agen¬ 
cies.  We  learn  that  a  certain  fluid  pervades  all  nature 
which  is  capable  of  giving  a  shock  to  the  animal  frame, 
which  shock  may  be  communicated  in  an  instant  to  a  thou¬ 
sand  individuals — that  this  fluid  moves  with  inconceivable 
rapidity — that  it  can  be  drawn  from  the  clouds  in  the  form 
of  a  stream  of  fire — that  it  melts  iron  wire,  increases  the 
evaporation  of  fluids,  destroys  the  polarity  of  the  magnetic 
needle,  and  occasionally  displays  its  energies  among  the 
clouds  in  the  form  of  fire  balls,  lambent  flames,  and  forked 
lightnings.  We  learn  that  the  bodies  of  birds,  fishes,  qua 

1 JL 


158  THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 

drupeds,  and  insects,  in  relation  to  their  eyes,  feet,  wings, 
tins,  and  other  members,  are  formed  with  admirable  skill, 
s-o  as  to  be  exactly  adapted  to  their  various  necessities  and 
inodes  of  existence,  and  that  they  consist  of  an  infinite 
number  of  contrivances  and  adaptations  in  order  to  accom¬ 
plish  the  purpose  intended — and  that  the  beaver,  the  bee, 
the  ant,  and  other  insects,  construct  their  habitations,  and 
perform  their  operations  with  all  the  skill  and  precision  of 
the  nicest  mathematical  science.  The  bee,  in  particular, 
works,  as  if  it  knew  the  highest  branches  of  mathematics, 
which  required  the  genius  of  Newton  to  discover. — In  short, 
the  ivhole  of  nature  presents  a  scene  of  wonders  which, 
when  seriously  contemplated,  is  calculated  to  expand  the 
intellectual  powers,  to  refine  the  affections,  and  to  excite 
admiration  of  the  attributes  of  God,  and  the  plan  of  his 
providence. 

Natural  Philosophy  may,  therefore,  be  considered  as  a 
branch  both  of  the  religion  of  nature,  and  of  the  religion  of 
revelation.  It  removes,  in  part,  the  veil  which  is  spread 
over  the  mysterious  operations  of  nature,  and  discloses  to 
our  view  the  wonders  which  lie  concealed  from  the  sottish 
multitude,  “  who  regard  not  the  works  of  the  Lord,  nor 
consider  the  operations  of  his  hands.”  It  enables  us  to 
perceive  the  footsteps  of  the  Almighty  both  in  his  majestic 
movements,  and  in  his  most  minute  designs ;  for  there  is  not 
a  step  we  can  take  in  the  temple  of  nature,  under  the  gui¬ 
dance  of  an  enlightened  philosophy,  in  which  we  do  not 
behold  traces  of  inscrutable  wisdom  and  design,  and  of  a 
benevolence  which  extends  its  kind  regards  to  every  rank 
ot  sensitive  and  intelligent  existence.  It  shows  us  the 
beauty  and  goodness  of  the  Divine  administration  ;  and  de¬ 
monstrates,  that  the  communication  of  happiness  is  the  final 
cause  of  all  the  admirable  arrangements  which  pervade  the 
material  system.  It  teaches  us,  that  the  several  operations 
of  nature  are  carried  on  by  means  uncontrollable  by  human 
power,  and  far  transcending  finite  skill  to  plan  or  to  execute. 
It  discovers  those  laws  by  which  the  Sovereign  of  the  uni¬ 
verse  governs  his  vast  dominions,  and  maintains  them  in 
undecaying  beauty  and  splendour,  throughout  all  ages.  It 
thus  enables  us  to  consecrate  the  universe  into  one  grand 
temple,  and,  from  the  contemplation  of  every  object  it 
presents,  to  elevate  our  minds,  and  to  raise  our  voices  in 
grateful  praises  to  Him  “  who  created  all  things,  and  for 
whose  pleasure  they  are  and  were  created.” 


NATURAL  PHILOSOPHY. 


159 


In  the  future  world  there  will  be  abundant  scope  for  the 
prosecution  of  this  subject  to  an  indefinite  extent.  With 
respect  to  the  state  of  separate  spirits,  after  their  departure 
from  this  world,  the  employments  in  which  they  engage, 
and  the  connexion  in  which  they  stand  to  the  material  sys¬ 
tem,  we  can  form  no  distinct  conception,  and  must  remain 
in  ignorance  till  the  period  arrive  when  we  shall  be  actually 
ushered  into  that  mysterious  scene  of  existence.  But,  we 
are  assured,  that  after  the  resurrection,  a  material  world 
will  be  prepared  for  the  habitation  of  the  just,  in  which  their 
connexion  with  the  visible  universe  will,  doubtless,  be  far 
more  extensive  than  it  is  at  present ;  and  wherever  a  mate¬ 
rial  system  exists,  it  affords  scope  for  physical  investiga¬ 
tions,  and  for  the  application  of  the  principles  of  Natural 
Philosophy.  This  new  world  will  be  prepared  and  ar¬ 
ranged  by  Divine  wisdom  ;  and,  consequently,  will  exhibit 
scenes  of  beauty  and  grandeur,  of  exquisite  contrivance  and 
benevolent  design.  For;  if  the  world  we  now  inhabit, 
amidst  all  the  deformities  and  physical  derangements  which 
sin  has  introduced,  displays  so  many  beautiful  arrangements 
and  marks  of  intelligence  and  skill,  much  more  may  we  con¬ 
clude,  that  the  world  in  which  “  righteousness  shall  dwell,” 
will  abound  in  every  thing  that  can  charm  the  eye,  the  ear, 
or  the  imagination,  and  illustrate  the  manifold  wisdom  of 
God ;  and  of  course  will  present  a  boundless  field  for  the 
most  sublime  investigations  of  science.  This  world,  in 
many  of  its  arrangements,  will  doubtless  present  a  variety 
of  objects  and  scenes  altogether  different  from  those  we  now 
behold,  even  although  the  same  physical  laws  which  govern 
our  terrestrial  system  should  still  continue  in  operation. 
The  inflection,  refraction,  and  reflection  of  light  will  be 
directed  by  the  same  general  laws,  and  will  produce  effects 
analogous  to  those  we  now  perceive  in  the  scene  around  us  ; 
but  the  mediums  through  which  it  passes,  and  the  various 
objects  by  which  it  is  refracted  and  reflected,  and  many  other 
modifications  to  which  it  may  be  subjected,  may  produce  a 
variety  of  astonishing  effects,  surpassing  every  thing  we  now 
behold,  and  exhibit  scenes  of  beauty  and  magnificence  of 
which  we  can,  at  present,  form  no  distinct  conception.  The 
science  of  optics,  in  unfolding  to  us  the  nature  of  light, 
and  the  various  properties  of  prisms,  mirrors,  and  lenses, 
has  enabled  us  to  exibit  a  variety  of  beautiful  and  surpris¬ 
ing  effects,  and  to  perceive  traces  of  infinite  intelligence  in  re¬ 
lation  to  this  element,  beyond  what  former  ages  could  have 


160 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTUKE  STATE. 


believed.  And,  therefore,  we  have  reason  to  conclude, 
that,  m  the  hand  of  Omnipotence,  when  arranging  other 
worlds,  the  element  of  light  is  capable  of  being  modified 
in  a  thousand  forms  of  which  we  are  now  ignorant,  so  as  to 
produce  the  most  glorious  and  transporting  effects.  There 
wi  probably  be  no  such  phenomena  as  thunder,  lio-htening 
and  fiery  meteors  in  the  world  to  which  I  allude,  but  the 
electrical  fluid,  which  is  the  principal  agent  in  producing 
these  appearances,  and  which  pervades  every  part  of  nature 
may  operate  in  that  world  in  a  different  manner,  and,  in¬ 
stead  of  producing  effects  that  are  terrific  and  appalling 
may  be  an  agent  for  creating  scenes  which  will  inspire  the 
soul  with  admiration  and  delight.  Some  of  the  mechanical, 
pneumatical,  and  hydrostatical  principles  which  enter  into 
the  construction  of  mills,  wheel-carriages,  forcing-pumps, 
and  steam-engines,  may  not  be  applied  to  the  same  pur¬ 
poses  in  the  future  world;  but  they  may  be  applicable  to  a 
variety  of  other  unknown  purposes  corresponding  to  the 
nature  of  that  world,  and  the  character  and  employments 
of  its  inhabitants. 

In  such  cases  as  those  now  alluded  to,  and  in  thousands 
of  others,  there  will  be  ample  scope  for  the  application  of 
all  the  principles  of  natural  science  ;  and  thousands  of  facts 
and  principles,  to  us  unknown,  will  doubtless  be  brought  to 
light  by  the  superior  sagacity  of  the  heavenly  inhabitants. 

I  o  maintain  the  contrary,  would  be,  in  effect,  to  suppose, 
that,  the  inhabitants  of  heaven  are  endowed  with  powers  of 
intellect  inferior  to  those  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth,— 
that  their  knowledge  is  less  extensive  than  ours, — that  they 
make  no  progress  in  moral  and  intellectual  attainments,— 
and  that  they  have  no  desire  to  explore  “  the  works  of  the 
Lord,  and  to  consider  the  operations  of  his  hands.” 

What  has  been  now  stated  in  relation  to  Natural  Philoso¬ 
phy,  will  equally  apply  to  the  science  of  Chemistry.  This 
science  has  for  its  object  to  ascertain  the  first  principles  of 
all  bodies,  their  various  properties  and  combinations,  their 
mode  of  operation,  and  the  effects  they  produce  in  the  eco¬ 
nomy  of  nature.  Its  discoveries  have  not  only  unfolded 
many  of  the  admirable  processes  which  are  going  forward 
in  the  animal,  vegetable,  and  mineral  kingdoms,  fcbut  have 
opened  to  our  view  many  striking  displays  of  the  wisdom 
and  goodness  of  God,  in  producing,  by  the  most  simple 
means,  the  most  astonishing  and  benevolent  effects.  The 
principles  of  this  science  must,  therefore,  be  applicable 


ANATOMY  AND  PHYSIOLOGY. 


161 


•wherever  matter  exists,  under  whatever  shape  or  modifica¬ 
tion  it  may  present  itself:  and  as  all  the  worlds  throughout 
the  universe  are  composed  of  matter  compounded  into  va¬ 
rious  forms,  they  must  afford  an  ample  range  for  the  inves¬ 
tigations  and  researches  of  chemical  science. 

ANATOMY  AND  PHYSIOLOGY. 

Anatomy  and  Physiology  are  subjeets  which,  we  may 
reasonably  conclude,  will  occasionally  occupy  the  attention 
of  the  inhabitants  of  heaven.  The  object  of  these  sciences 
is,  to  investigate  the  general  structure  and  economy  of  the 
animal  frame,  and  especially  the  parts  and  functions  of  the 
human  body.  The  system  of  organization  connected  with 
the  human  frame  is  the  most  admirable  piece  of  mechanism 
which  the  mind  can  contemplate — whether  we  consider  the  im¬ 
mense  number  and  variety  of  its  parts,  the  numerous  functions 
they  perform,  the  rapid  movements  which  are  incessantly 
going  forward  throughout  every  part  of  this  system,  the 
amazing  force  exerted  by  the  heart  and  muscles,  the  pro¬ 
cesses  of  digestion  and  respiration,  the  system  of  veins  and 
arteries,  the  articulation  of  the  bones,  the  structure  and 
course  of  the  lymphatics,  the  ramifications  of  the  nerves, 
the  circulation  of  the  blood,  the  wonderful  changes,  disso¬ 
lutions,  and  combinations  continually  going  on,  the  chemical 
apparatus  adapted  for  effecting  these  purposes,  the  organs 
of  sense  by  which  an  intercourse  is  maintained  with  the 
external  world — or,  the  harmonious  correspondence  of  all 
its  parts  and  functions  with  the  agencies  of  the  surrounding 
elements.  From  the  researches  of  physiologists  vve  learn, 
that  there  are  in  the  human  body,  two  hundred  and  forty- 
five  bones,  variously  articulated,  each  of  them  having  above 
forty  distinct  scopes  or  intentions;  and  four  hundred  and 
forty-six  muscles  of  various  figures  and  magnitudes,  con¬ 
nected  with  the  bones,  for  producing  the  numerous  move¬ 
ments  of  the  animal  frame — that  more  than  a  hundred  of 
these  muscles  are  employed  every  time  we  breathe — that 
there  are  thousands  of  veins  and  arteries  distributed  through¬ 
out  every  part  of  this  wonderful  system — that  the  whole 
mass  of  blood  rushes  with  immense  velocity  through  these 
vessels,  and  through  the  heart,  fourteen  times  every  hour — • 
that  respiration  is  nothing  else  than  a  species  of  combustion , 
in  which  the  oxygen  of  the  atmosphere  is  absorbed  by  the 
blood,  and  diffuses  heat  and  vigour  throughout  the  system — 
that  the  lungs  are  composed  of  an  infinite  number  of  mem- 

14* 


162 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


bran ous  cells  or  vesicles  variously  figured,  and  full  of  air, 
communicating  on  all  sides  with  one  another,  and  that  their 
number  amounts  to  at  least  1,700,000,000—  that  there  are 
above  three  hundred  thousand  millions  of  pores  in  the 
glands  of  the  skin  which  covers  the  body  of  a  middle-sized 
man,  through  which  the  sweat  and  insensible  perspiration 
are  continually  issuing — that  thousands  of  lacteal  and  lym¬ 
phatic  tubes  are  absorbing  and  conveying  nutriment  to  the 
blood— that  the  heart,  in  the  centre  of  the  system,  is  exert¬ 
ing  an  immense  muscular  force,  and  giving  ninety-six  thou¬ 
sand  strokes  every  twenty-four  hours and  that  all  this 
complicated  system  of  mechanism,  and  hundreds  of  other 
functions  of  which  we  are  ignorant,  must  be  in  constant 
action,  in  order  to  preserve  us  in  existence,  and  secure  our 
enjoyment. 

This  subject  frequently  engaged  the  attention  of  the  pi¬ 
ous  Psalmist.  With  an  eye  of  intelligence  and  devotion, 
he  suiveyed  the  curious  organization  of  the  human  frame, 
from  the  rude  embryo  in  the  womb  to  the  full  developement 
o  all  its  functions; — and,  struck  with  the  wisdom  and 
goodness  displayed  in  its  formation,  he  raised  his  thoughts 
to  God  in  grateful  adoration.  “  I  will  praise  thee,”  he  ex- 
c  aima,  “for  I  am  fearfully  and  wonderfully  made;  marvel¬ 
lous  are  thy  works!  How  precious  are  thy  wonderful  con- 
tnvances  in  relation  to  me,  O  God !  How  great  is  the  sum 
of  them!  If  I  should  count  them,  they  are  more  in  number 
than  the  sand.”  This  body,  however,  wonderful  as  its 
structure  is,  is  liable  to  decay,  and  must  soon  be  dissolved 
in  the  grave.  But  we  are  assured  that  a  period  is  approach- 
mg,  wlmn  “  all  that  are  in  their  graves  shall  hear  the  voice 
of  the  Son  of  God  and  shall  come  forth ;”  when  this  mortal 
frame  “shall  put  on  immortality ,”  and  when  that  which 
was  sown  in  corruption  “shall  be  raised  in  glory .”  If  the 
human  body,  even  in  its  present  state  of  degradation,  ex¬ 
cited  the  pious  admiration  of  the  Psalmist,  much  more  will 
it  appear  worthy  of  our  highest  admiration,  when  it 
emerges  from  darkness  and  corruption  to  participate  in  the 
glories  of  an  immortal  life.  Its  faculties  will  then  be  in¬ 
vigorated,  its  tendency  to  dissolution  destroyed,  every 
principle  of  disease  annihilated,  and  every  thing  that  is 
loathsome  and  deformed  for  ever  prevented.'  Being  “fash¬ 
ioned  like  unto  Christ’s  glorious  body,”  its  beaut/  will  be 
exquisite,  its  symmetry  perfect,  its  aspect  bright  and  refulgent, 
and  its  motions  vigorous  and  nimble.  Its  sensitive  organs 


HISTORY. 


163 


will  be  refined  and  improved,  and  the  sphere  of  their  opera¬ 
tion  extended.  Its  auditory  organs  will  be  tuned  to  receive 
the  most  delightful  sensations  from  the  harmonies  of  celes¬ 
tial  music,  and  its  visual  powers  rendered  capable  of  per¬ 
ceiving  the  minutest  objects,  and  penetrating  into  the  most 
distant  regions.  New  senses  and  faculties  of  perception, 
and  new  powers  of  motion,  fitted  to  transport  it  with  ra¬ 
pidity  from  one  portion  of  space  to  another,  will,  in  all 
probability,  be  superadded  to  the  powers  with  which  it  is 
now  invested.  And,  surely,  the  contrivances  and  adapta¬ 
tions  which  must  enter  into  the  structure  of  such  an  or- 
ganical  frame,  cannot  be  less  curious  and  exquisite,  nor  dis¬ 
play  less,  wisdom  and  intelligence  than  those  which  we  now 
perceive  in  our  mortal  bodies.  On  the  contrary,  we  must 
necessarily  suppose  thousands  of  the  most  delicate  con¬ 
trivances  and  compensations,  different  from  every  thing  we 
can  now  conceive,  to  be  essentially  requisite  in  the  con¬ 
struction  of  an  organized  body  intended  for  perpetual  ac¬ 
tivity,  and  destined  to  an  immortal  duration. — To  investi¬ 
gate  and  to  contemplate  the  contrivances  of  Divine  wisdom, 
by  which  the  elements  of  disease  and  death  are  for  ever  pre¬ 
vented  from  entering  into  this  renovated  frame,  and  by  which 
it  will  be  preserved  in  undecaying  youth  and  vigour  through¬ 
out  the  lapse  of  innumerable  ages,  we  must  necessarily 
conclude,  will  form  a  part  of  the  studies  of  renovated  man 
in  the  future  world ; — nor  can  we  help  thinking,  that  the 
knowledge  of  the  wonders  of  the  human  frame  we  now  ac¬ 
quire,  may  be  a  preparatory  qualification,  for  enabling  us  to 
form  an  enlightened  and  comprehensive  conception  of  the 
powers,  qualities,  and  peculiar  organization,  of  the  bodies 
of  the  saints  after  the  period  of  the  resurrection. 


HISTORY. 

Another  branch  of  study  in  which  the  saints  in  heaven 
will  engage,  is  History.  History  contains  a  record  of  past 
facts  and  events  ;  and  makes  us  acquainted  with  transactions 
which  happened  hundreds  or  thousands  of  years  before  we 
were  brought  into  existence.  When  viewed  in  its  proper 
light,  it  may  be  considered  as  nothing  else  than  a  detail  of 
the  operations  of  Divine  Providence  in  relation  to  the  moral 
intelligences  of  this  world.  It  illustrates  the  character  of 
the  human  race,  and  tne  deep  and  universal  depravity  in 
which  they  are  involved ;  and  displays  the  rectitude  of 


164  THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 

the  character  of  God,  and  the  equity  of  his  moral  adminis¬ 
tration. 

History,  therefore,  will  form  a  prominent  object  of  study 
among  the  celestial  inhabitants,  as  furnishing  those  materi¬ 
als  which  will  illustrate  the  ways  of  Providence,  and  dis¬ 
play  the  wisdom  and  righteousness  of  Jehovah  in  his  go¬ 
vernment  of  the  world.  At  present  we  can  contemplate 
only  a  few  scattered  fragments  of  the  history  of  mankind. 
Of  the  history  of  some  nations  we  are  altogether  ignorant; 
and  of  the  history  of  others  we  have  only  a  few  unconnected 
details,  blended  with  fabulous  narrations  and  extravagant 
fictions.  Of  no  nation  whatever  have  we  an  entire  history 
composed  of  authentic  materials;  and,  consequently,  we  per¬ 
ceive  only  some  broken  and  detached  links  in  the  chain  of 
the  Divine  dispensations,  and  are  unable  to  survey  the  whole 
of  God’s  procedure  towards  our  race,  in  one  unbroken  se¬ 
ries,  from  the  creation  to  the  present  time.  We  know 
nothing  decisively  respecting  the  period  during  which  man 
remained  in  a  state  of  innocence,  nor  of  the  particular 
transactions  and  events  that  happened  previous  to  his  fall. 
And  how  little  do  we  know  of  the  state  of  mankind,  of  the 
events  which  befel  them,  and  of  the  civil  and  religious  ar¬ 
rangements  which  existed,  during  the  period  of  sixteen 
hundred  years  which  intervened  between  the  creation  and  the 
deluge,  though  the  world  was  then  more  fertile  and  populous 
than  it  has  ever  since  been?  How  little  do  we  know  of  the 
state  of  mankind  immediately  previous  to  the  flood,  of  the 
scenes  of  consternation  and  terror  which  must  have  been 
displayed  over  all  the  earth,  when  the  fountains  of  the  great 
deep  were  broken  up,  and  the  cataracts  of  heaven  opened, 
and  of  the  dreadful  concussion  of  the  elements  of  nature, 
when  the  solid  strata  of  the  earth  were  rent  asunder,  when 
the  foundations  of  the  mountains  were  overturned,  and  the 
whole  surface  of  the  globe  transformed  into  one  boundless 
ocean?  How  little  do  we  know  of  the  circumstances  which 
attended  the  gradual  rise  of  idolatry,  and  of  the  origin  of 
the  great  empires  into  which  the  world  has  been  divided? 
How  little  do  we  know  even  of  the  history  of  the  Jewish 
nation  posterior  to  the  period  of  the  Babylonish  captivity  ? 
Whither  were  the  ten  tribes  of  Israel  scattered  among  the 
nations,  what  events  have  befallen  them,  and  in  what  coun¬ 
tries  are  they  now  to  be  found  ?  Of  the  history  of  all  the 
nations  in  the  wrorld  (the  Jews  only  excepted)  from  the  time 
of  the  deluge  to  the  days  of  Hezekiah,  a  period  of  nearly 


HISTORY 


165 


two  thousand  years,  we  remain  in  profound  ignorance.  And 
yet,  during  that  long  period,  God  has  not  forsaken  the  earth; 
his  dispensations  towards  his  rational  offspring  were  still 
going  forward,  empires  were  rising  and  declining,  one 
generation  passing  away,  and  another  generation  coming, 
and  thousands  of  millions  of  mankind  ushered  into  the 
eternal  world. — Those  chasms  in  the  history  of  mankind, 
which  hide  from  our  view  the  greater  portion  of  God’s 
moral  dispensations,  will,  doubtless,  be  filled  up  in  the 
eternal  state,  so  that  we  shall  be  enabled  to  take  a  full  and 
comprehensive  view  of  the  whole  of  the  Divine  procedure, 
in  all  its  connexions  and  bearings  towards  every  nation 
upon  earth. 

But  the  history  of  man  is  not  the  only  topic  in  this  de¬ 
partment  of  knowledge,  that  will  occupy  the  attention  of 
the  inhabitants  of  heaven.  The  history  of  angels — of  their 
faculties,  intercourses,  and  employments — of  their  modes 
of  communication  with  each  other — of  their  different  em¬ 
bassies  to  distant  worlds — of  the  transactions  which  have 
taken  place  in  their  society — and  of  the  revolutions  through 
which  they  may  have  passed — the  history  of  apostate  angels 
— the  cause  of  their  fall,  and  the  circumstances  with  which 
it  was  attended — the  plans  they  have  been  pursuing  since 
that  period,  and  the  means  by  which  they  have  endeavoured 
to  accomplish  their  infernal  devices — will  doubtless  form  a 
portion  of  the  history  of  Divine  dispensations,  which  “  the 
saints  in  light”  will  be  permitted  to  contemplate.  Over  this 
part  of  the  Divine  economy  a  veil  of  darkness  is  spread, 
which,  we  have  reason  to  believe,  will  be  withdrawn,  when 
that  which  is  perfect  is  come,  and  “  when  we  shall  know 
even  as  also  we  are  known.”  It  is  also  probable,  that  the 
leading  facts  in  relation  to  the  history  of  other  worlds  will 
be  disclosed  to  their  view.  The  history  of  the  different 
planets  in  the  solar  system,  and  of  those  which  are  connect¬ 
ed  with  other  systems  in  the  universe — the  periods  of  their 
creation,  the  character  of  their  inhabitants,  the  changes 
through  which  they  have  passed,  the  peculiar  dispensations 
of  Providence  towards  them,  and  many  other  particulars, 
may  be  gradually  laid  open  to  the  “  redeemed  from  among 
men.”  ior  enlarging  their  views  of  the  Divine  government. 
By  means  of  such  communications  they  will  acquire  a  clearer 
and  more  distinct  conception  of  the  moral  character  and  at¬ 
tributes  of  God,  of  the  rectitude  of  his  administrations,  and 
of  “his  manifold  wisdom”  in  the  various  modes  by  which 


106 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 

he  governs  the  different  provinces  of  his  vast  empire.  Un- 
l*\e  jmPressi°ns  which  such  views  will  produce,  they 
will  rejoice  in  the  Divine  government,  and  join  with  rapture 
in  the  song  of  Moses,  the  servant  of  God,  and  the  song  of 
the  Lamb,  saying,  “  Great  and  marvellous  are  thy  works, 
Lord  God  Almighty  !  Just  and  true  are  thy  ways,  thou  Kin? 
of  saints  r 


1  hus  I  have  briefly  stated,  in  the  preceding  pages,  some 
of  those  branches  of  science  which  will  be  recognised  by 
the  righteous  in  a  future  state.  Several  other  departments 
of  scientific  knowledge  might  have  been  specified  ;  but  my 
intention  simply  was,  to  present  to  the  view  of  the  reader, 
a  few  specimens  as  illustrations  of  my  general  position, 
“  that  science  must  be  considered  as  having  a  relation  to  a 
future  world.”  If  it  be  admitted  that  any  one  science  will 
be  cultivated  in  heaven,  it  will  follow,  that  the  greater  part, 
if  not  the  whole,  of  those  sciences  which  bring  to  light  the 
treasures  of  useful  knowledge,  will  likewise  be  prosecuted 
by  superior  intelligences.  For  all  the  useful  sciences  have 
an  intimate  connexion  with  each  other ;  so  that  an  acquaint¬ 
ance  with  one  department  of  knowledge  is  essentially  re¬ 
quisite  to  a  clear  and  comprehensive  view  of  another.  As¬ 
tronomy  supposes  a  knowledge  of  arithmetic,  geometry, 
trigonometry,  conic  sections,  and  other  parts  of  mathema¬ 
tics  ;  experimental  philosophy  supposes  a  previous  acquaint¬ 
ance  with  natural  history  and  physiology,  and  is  intimately 
connected  with  chemistry,  mineralogy,  and  botany ;  and 
anatomy  and  physiology  suppose  a  knowledge  of  the  leading 
principles  of  hydrostatics,  pneumatics,  and  optics.  The 
principles  of  one  science  run  into  another,  and  reflect  a  mu¬ 
tual  lustre  on  each  other,  so  that  all  the  sciences,  when  pro¬ 
perly  conducted,  and  viewed  in  their  true  light,  have  but  one 
object  in  view,  namely,  to  ascertain  the  facts  existing  in  the 
universe,  their  connexions  and  relations,  the  laws  by  which 
they  are  governed,  and  the  illustrations  they  afford  of  the 
power,  wisdom,  and  benevolence  of  the  Creator. 


In  order  to  elucidate  this  topic  a  little  farther,  the  follow¬ 
ing  brief  remarks  may  be  stated. — It  is  admitted,  by  every 
believer  in  Revelation,*  that,  at  the  close  of  the  present 


*  The  followers  of  Baron  Swedenburg  only  excepted. 


LOCALITY  OF  HEAVEN. 


10? 


arrangements  respecting  our  world,  “  All  that  are  in  their 
graves  shall  be  raised  to  life and  that,  however  different 
the  constitution  of  these  new-modelled  bodies  may  be  from 
their  present  state  of  organization,  they  will  still  be  material 
vehicles,  furnished  with  organs  of  sensation  as  the  medium 
of  perception  to  the  immaterial  spirit.  In  what  manner  the 
disembodied  spirit  views  material  objects  and  relations,  and 
applies  the  knowledge  of  them  which  it  acquired  while 
united  to  an  organical  structure,  we  can  have  no  conception 
whatever,  till  we  be  actually  ushered  into  the  separate  state; 
and,  therefore,  the  observations  already  made,  or  which  may 
yet  be  thrown  out  on  this  subject,  are  not  intended  to  ap¬ 
ply  to  the  intermediate  state  of  the  spirits  of  good  men. 
That  state,  whatever  may  be  the  modus  of  perception  and 
enjoyment  in  it,  is  a  state  of  imperfection,  and,  in  some  re¬ 
spects,  an  unnatural  state,  if  we  suppose  that  the  spirit  is 
not  connected  with  any  material  vehicle.  Now,  if  it  be 
admitted,  that  the  spirits  of  the  just,  at  the  general  resur¬ 
rection,  are  to  be  reunited  to  material  organical  structures, 
it  must  also  be  admitted,  that  those  structures  must  have 
some  material  substratum  on  which  to  rest,  or,  in  other 
words,  a  material  world  or  habitation  in  which  they  may 
reside.  This  last  position  is  also  as  evident,  from  the  decla¬ 
rations  of  Scripture,  as  the  first.  For,  while  we  are  in-  ' 
formed  that  the  elementary  parts  of  our  globe  shall  be  dis¬ 
solved,  we  are  at  the  same  time  assured,  that  “ new  heavens 
and  a  new  earth ”  shall  be  prepared,  “  wherein  the  righteous 
shall  dwell — that  is,  a  world  purified  from  physical  and 
moral  evil,  and  fitted  to  the  renovated  faculties  of  the  re¬ 
deemed,  will  be  prepared  in  some  part  of  the  universe,  for 
the  residence  of  the  just. 

In  reference  to  the  locality ,  and  the  circumstances  of  our 
future  destination,  there  appear  to  be  only  four  or  five  sup 
positions  that  can  be  formed.  Either,  1.  The  world  we 
now  inhabit  will  be  new-modelled,  after  the  general  confla¬ 
gration,  and  furnished  as  a  proper  place  of  residence  for  its 
renovated  inhabitants  ; — or,  2.  Some  of  the  globes  now  ex¬ 
isting  in  other  regions  of  space,  to  which  the  holy  inhabit¬ 
ants  of  our  world  will  be  transported,  may  be  allotted  as 
the  more  permanent  habitation  of  the  just ; — or,  3.  Some 
new  globe  or  world  will  be  immediately  created,  adapted  to 
the  circumstances  of  redeemed  men,  and  adorned  with 
scenery  fitted  to  call  forth  into  exercise  their  renovated 
powers ;  or,  4.  The  redeemed  inhabitants  of  heaven  may 


168 


THE  FHILOSOniY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


be  permitted  to  transport  themselves  from  one  region  oi 
world  to  another,  and  be  furnished  with  faculties  and  vehi¬ 
cles  for  this  purpose  ; — or,  5.  After  remaining  for  a  certain 
lapse  of  ages  in  that  particular  world  to  which  they  shall  he 
introduced  immediately  after  the  resurrection,  they  may  be 
transported  to  another  region  of  the  universe,  to  contem¬ 
plate  a  new  scene  of  creating  power  and  intelligence,  and 
afterwards  pass,  at  distant  intervals,  through  a  successive 
series  of  transportations,  in  order  to  obtain  more  ample 
prospects  of  the  riches  and  glory  of  God’s  universal  king¬ 
dom. 

In  all  these  cases,  whatever  supposition  we  may  adopt  as 
most  probable,  the  general  laws  which  now  govern  the 
universe,  and  the  general  relations  of  the  great  bodies  in 
the  universe  to  each  other  will  remain,  on  the  whole,  un¬ 
changed  ;  unless  we  adopt  the  unreasonable  and  extravagant 
supposition,  that  the  whole  frame  of  Jehovah’s  empire  will 
be  unhinged  and  overturned,  for  the  sake  of  our  world, 
which,  when  compared  with  the  whole  system  of  nature,  is 
but  an  undistinguishable  atom  amidst  the  immensity  of  God’s 
works.  With  equal  reason  might  we  suppose,  that  the 
conduct  of  the  inhabitants  of  a  planet  which  revolves  around 
the  star  Sirius,  or  the  catastrophe  which  may  have  befallen 
the  planets  Ceres,  Pallas,  Juno,  and  Yesta,  must  necessarily 
involve  in  them  the  destruction  of  the  terraqueous  globe. 

Let  us  suppose,  for  a  moment,  that  the  globe  we  now  in¬ 
habit,  with  its  surrounding  atmosphere,  shall  be  cleared 
from  the  physical  evils  which  now  exist,  and  undergo  a  new 
arrangement  to  render  it  fit  for  being  the  abode  of  holy 
intelligences  in  a  future  state.  On  this  supposition,  would 
not  the  general  relation  of  things  in  the  universe  remain 
materially  the  same  as  at  present?  The  wide  expanse  of 
the  firmament,  and  all  the  orbs  it  contains,  would  present 
the  same  general  arrangement  and  relation  to  each  other 
which  they  now  do.  Supposing  this  new-modelled  world 
to  be  of  a  spherical  or  spheroidal  figure — which  appears  to 
be  the  general  form  of  all  the  great  bodies  in  the  universe 
with  which  we  are  acquainted — there  would  then  exist  cer¬ 
tain  properties  and  relations  between  circles  cutting  each 
other  at  right  angles,  or  in  any  other  direction  ;  or,  in  other 
words,  between  an  equator  and  poles,  parallels  and  meridi¬ 
ans,  &c.  as  at  present.  The  direction  of  its  motion,  the 
inclination  of  its  axis,  the  component  parts  of  its  surface 
and  atmosphere,  and  other  circumstances,  might  be  chang- 


SCIENCES  PECULIAR  TO  HEAVEN. 


169 


ed,  which  would  produce  an  immense  variety  of  phenome¬ 
na,  different  from  what  now  takes  place;  but  the  same 
general  principles  of  geography,  astronomy,  arithmetic, 
geometry,  chemistry,  and  mechanics,  which  apply  to  all  the 
various  relations  of  material  objects,  wherever  existing, 
would  also  be  applicable  in  the  present  case ;  and,  conse¬ 
quently,  such  sciences  would  be  recognised  and  cultivated, 
and  the  principles  on  which  they  are  built,  reasoned  and 
acted  upon,  though  in  a  more  perfect  manner  than  at  pre¬ 
sent,  in  this  new  world  and  new  order  of  things.  Such 
sciences,  therefore,  as  flow  from  the  natural  and  necessary 
relations  of  material  objects,  and  which  tend  to  direct  us  in 
our  conceptions  of  the  wisdom  and  power  of  the  great 
Architect  of  nature,  must  be  known  and  cultivated  in  a  fu¬ 
ture  world,  where  rational  spirits  are  united  to  an  organical 
structure,  and  related  to  a  material  system;  and  conse¬ 
quently,  if  the  elementary  and  fundamental  principles  of 
such  sciences  be  not  acquired  now,  they  will  remain  to  be 
acquired  hereafter. 

The  remarks  now  stated,  with  a  few  modifications,  will 
apply  to  any  of  the  other  suppositions  which  may  be  made 
in  reference  to  the  place  and  circumstances  of  our  future 
destination. — Even  although  the  relations  of  external  ob¬ 
jects  and  their  various  properties,  in  the  future  world,  were 
altogether  different  from  those  which  obtain  in  the  present 
state  of  things,  still,  it  would  be  useful  and  highly  gratify¬ 
ing  to  the  mind,  to  be  enabled  to  compare  the  one  with  the 
other,  and  to  perceive  how  the  Divine  wisdom  is  displayed 
in  every  mode  and  variety  of  existence.  No  possible  mode 
of  material  existence,  however,  can  be  conceived  to  exist, 
to  which  some  of  the  elementary  principles  of  scientific 
knowledge  do  not  apply. 

There  are,  indeed,  several  arts  and  sciences  which  more 
immediately  respect  the  present  world,  and  our  relations  in 
it,  which  cannot  be  supposed  to  be  subjects  of  investigation 
in  a  future  state  of  happy  existence.  The  study  of  lan¬ 
guages — which  forms  a  prominent  object  of  attention  with 
many  of  those  who  declaim  on  the  vanity  of  human  sci¬ 
ence — the  study  of  medicine  as  a  practical  art;  the  study  of 
civil  and  municipal  law;  the  study  of  political  economy, 
heraldry,  and  fortification ;  the  arts  of  war,  farriery,  falconry, 
hunting, and  fishing;  the  arts  of  the  manufacturer,  clothier, 
dyer,  &c. — in  short,  all  those  arts  and  sciences  which  have 
their  foundation  in  the  moral  depravity  of  our  nature,  will, 

15 


170 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


oi  course,  pass  away,  as  exercises  which  were  peculiar  to 
the  deranged  slate  of  our  terrestrial  habitation,  and  the  de¬ 
graded  condition  of  its  inhabitants;  and  which,  therefore, 
can  have  no  place  in  a  scene  of  moral  perfection.  But  the 
principles  of  the  mathematics,  and  the  axioms  on  which 
they  are  built,  ‘he  truths  of  natural  philosophy,  astronomy, 
geography,  mechanics,  and  similar  sciences,  will  be  recog¬ 
nised,  and  form  the  basis  of  reasoning  and  of  action,  so 
long  as  we  are  sentient  beings,  and  have  a  relation  to  the 
material  system  of  the  universe.  Many  truths,  indeed, 
which  now  require  much  study,  and  long  and  intricate 
trams  of  reasoning  before  they  can  be  acquired,  may  be 
perceived  by  simple  intuition,  or,  at  least,  be  more  easily 
and  rapidly  apprehended  than  at  present.  If  a  genius,  like 
that  oi  Sir  Isaac  Newton,  could  perceive  at  a  glance,  the 
truth  of  Euclid’s  propositions  in  geometry,  without  attend¬ 
ing  to  every  part  ol  the  process  requisite  for  ordinary  minds, 
we  may  reasonably  conclude,  that,  in  a  world  where  the 
physical  and  moral  obstructions  to  intellectual  energy  are 
removed,  every  science,  and  every  relation  subsisting  amono- 
coporeal  and  intellectual  beings,  will  be  more  clearly,  ra” 
pi'll v' ,  and  comprehensively  perceived  and  understood. 

Many  striking  instances  have  occasionally  occured,  of 
the  capacity  and  vigour  of  the  human  mind,  even  amidst 
the  obscurities,  and  the  obstructions  to  mental  activity 
which  exist  in  the  present  state  of  things.  The  illustrious 
1  ascal,  no  less  celebrated  for  his  piety  than  for  his  intel¬ 
lectual  acquirements,  when  under  the  age  oi  twelve  years, 
and  while  immersed  in  the  study  of  languages,  without 
books,  and  without  an  instructor,  discovered  and  demon¬ 
strated  most  of  the  propositions  in  the  first  book  of  Euclid, 
belore  he  knevv  that  such  a  book  was  in  existence — to4he 
astonishment  of  every  mathematician  ;  so  that,  at  that  early 
age,  he  was  an  inventor  of  geometrical  science.  He  after¬ 
wards  made  some  experiments  and  discoveries  on  the  na¬ 
ture  of  sound,  and  on  the  weight  of  the  air,  and  demon¬ 
strated  the  pressure  of  the  atmosphere;  and,  at  the  age  of 
sixteen,  composed  a  treatise  on  Conic  Sections,  which,  in  the 
judgment  of  men  of  the  greatest  abilities,  was  viewed  as  an 
astonishing  effort  of  the  human  mind.  At  nineteen  years 
of  age,  he  invented  an  arithmetical  machine  by  which  cal¬ 
culations  are  made,  not  only  without  the  help  of  a  pen,  but 
even  without  a  person’s  knowing  a  single  rule  in  arithmetic; 
and  by  the  age  of  twenty-four,  he  had  acquired  a  profi 


SUBLIMITY  OF  THE  MENTAL  FACULTIES.  171 

ciency  in  almost  every  branch  of  human  knowledge,  when 
his  mind  became  entirely  absorbed  in  the  exercises  of  reli¬ 
gion.— The  celebrated  Grotius,  at  the  age  of  thirteen,  only 
a  year  after  his  arrival  at  the  university  of  Leyden,  main- 
tamed  public  theses  in  mathematics,  philosophy,  and  law, 
with  universal  applause.  At  the  age  of  fourteen,  he  ven¬ 
tured  to  form  literary  plans  which  required  an  amazing  ex¬ 
tent  of  knowledge;  and  he  executed  them  in  such  perfec¬ 
tion,  that  the  literary  world  was  struck  with  astonishment. 
At  this  early  age  he  published  an  edition  of  Martianus 
Capetia,  and  acquitted  himself  of  the  task  in  a  manner 
which  would  have  done  honour  to  the  greatest  scholars  of 
the  age.  At  the  age  of  seventeen,  he  entered  on  the  pro¬ 
fession  of  an  advocate,  and  pleaded  his  first  cause  at  Delf, 
with  the  greatest  reputation,  having  previously  made  an 
extraordinary  progress  in  the  knowledge  of  the  sciences. — 
The  Admirable  Crichton ,  who  received  his  education  at 
.Perth  and  St.  Andrews,  by  the  time  he  had  reached  his 
twentieth  year  was  master  of  ten  languages,  and  had  gone 
through  the  whole  circle  of  the  sciences,  as  they  were  then 
understood.  At  Paris,  he  one  day  engaged  in  a  disputation, 
which  lasted  nine  hours,  in  the  presence  of  three  thousand 
auditors,  against  four  doctors  of  the  church,  and  fifty  mas¬ 
ters,  on  every  subject  they  could  propose,  and  having  silenc¬ 
ed  all  his  antagonists,  he  came  off  amidst  the  loudest  ac¬ 
clamations,  though  he  had  spent  no  time  in  previous  prepa¬ 
ration  for  the  contest. — Gassendi,  a  celebrated  philosopher 
of  France,  at  the  age  of  four,  declaimed  little  sermons  of 
his  own  composition;  at  the  ige  of  seven,  spent  whole 
nights  in  observing  the  motions  of  the  heavenly  bodies,  cf 
which  he  acquired  a  considerable  knowledge;  at  sixteen  he 
was  appointed  professor  of  rhetoric  at  Digne,  and  at  the  age 
of  nineteen,  he  was  elected  professor  of  philosophy  in  the 
university  of  Aix.  His  vast  knowledge  of  philosophy  and 
mathematics  was  ornamented  by  a  sincere  attachment  to  the 
Christian  religion,  and  a  life  formed  upon  its  principles  and 
precepts. — Jeremiah  Horrox,  a  name  celebrated  in  the  an¬ 
nals  of  astronomy,  before  he  attained  the  age  of  seventeen, 
had  acquired  solely  by  his  own  industry,  and  the  help  of  a 
few  Latin  authors,  a  most  extensive  and  accurate  know¬ 
ledge  of  astronomy,  and  of  the  branches  of  mathematical 
learning  connected  with  it.  He  composed  astronomical  ta¬ 
bles  for  himself,  and  corrected  the  errors  of  the  most  cele¬ 
brated  astronomers  of  his  time.  He  calculated  a  transit  o. 


172 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


the  planet  Venus  across  the  sun’s  disk,  and  was  the  first  of 
mortals  who  beheld  thissingular  phenomenon,  which  is  now 
considered  of  so  much  importance  in  astronomical  science. 

^ir  Isaac  Newton,  the  fame  of  whose  genius  has  extended 
over  the  whole  civilized  world,  made  his  discoveries  in  geo¬ 
metry  and  fluxions,  and  laid  the  foundation  of  his  two  cele¬ 
brated  works,  his  “ Principia ”  and  “Optics,”  by  the  time 
he  was  twenty-four  years  of  age;  and  yet  these  works  con¬ 
tain  so  many  abstract,  profound,  and  sublime  truths,  that 
only  the  first-rate  mathematicians  are  qualified  to  understand 
and  appreciate  them.  In  learning  mathematics,  he  did  no* 
study  the  geometry  of  Euclid,  who  seemed  to  him  too  plain 
and  simple,  and  unworthy  of  taking  up  his  time.  He 
understood  him  almost  before  he  read  him;  and  a  cast  of 
his  eye  upon  the  contents  of  his  theorems,  was  sufficient  to 
make  him  master  ot  their  demonstrations.  Amidst  all  the 
sublime  investigations  of  physical  and  mathematical  science 
in  which  he  engaged,  and  amidst  the  variety  of  books  he 
had  constantly  before  him,  the  Bible  was  that  which  he 
studied  with  the  greatest  application;  and  his  meekness  and 
modesty  were  no  less  admirable  than  the  variety  and  extent 
of  his  intellectual  acquirements.—./.  Philip  Baratier,  who 
died  at  Halle,  in  1740,  in  the  twentieth  year  of  his  age,  was 
endowed  with  extraordinary  powers  of  memory  and  com¬ 
prehension  of  mind.  At  the  age  of  five,  he  understood  the 
Hreek,  Latin,  German,  and  French  languages;  at  the  age 
of  nine,  he  could  translate  any  part  of  the  Hebrew  Scrip¬ 
tures  into  Latin,  and  could  repeat  the  whole  Hebrew  Psal¬ 
ter;  and  before  lie  had  completed  his  tenth  year,  he  drew 
up  a  Hebrew  lexicon  of  uncommon  and  difficult  words,  to 
which  he  added  many  curious  critical  remarks.  In  his 
thirteenth  year,  he  published,  in  two  volumes  octavo,  a 
translation  from  the  Hebrew  of  Rabbi  Benjamin’s  “Tra¬ 
vels  in  Europe,  Asia,  and  Africa,”  with  historical  and  criti¬ 
cal  notes  and  dissertations;  the  whole  of  which  he  com¬ 
pleted  in  four  months.  In  the  midst  of  these  studies,  he 
prosecuted  philosophical  and  mathematical  pursuits,  and  in 
his  fourteenth  year,  invented  a  method  of  discovering  the 
longitude  at  sea,  which  exhibited  the  strongest  marks  of 
superior  abilities.  In  one  winter,  he  read  twenty  great 
folios,  with  all  the  attention  of  a  vast  and  comprehensive 
mind. 

Such  rapid  progress  in  intellectual  acquirements  striking 
1  y  evinces  the  vigour  and  comprehension  of  the  human 


GENERAL  REMARKS. 


173 


faculties ;  and  if  such  varied  and  extensive  acquisitions  in 
knowledge  can  be  attained,  even  amidst  the  frailties  and 
physical  impediments  of  this  mortal  state,  it  is  easy  to  con¬ 
ceive,  with  what  energy  and  rapidity  the  most  sublime  in¬ 
vestigations  may  be  prosecuted  in  the  future  world,  when 
the  spirit  is  connected  with  an  incorruptible  body,  fitted  to 
accompany  it  in  all  its  movements  ;  and  when  every  moral 
obstruction  which  now  impedes  its  activity  shall  be  com¬ 
pletely  removed.  The  flights  of  the  loftiest  genius  that  ever 
appeared  on  earth,  when  compared  with  the  rapid  move¬ 
ments  and  comprehensive  views  of  the  heavenly  inhabitants, 
may  be  no  more  than  as  the  flutterings  of  a  microscopic  in¬ 
sect,  to  the  sublime  flights  of  the  soaring  eagle.  When  en¬ 
dowed  with  new  and  vigorous  senses,  and  full  scope  is  af¬ 
forded  for  exerting  all  the  energies  of  their  renovated  facul- 
ties,  they  may  be  enabled  to  trace  out  the  hidden  springs  of 
nature’s  operations,  to  pursue  the  courses  of  the  heavenly 
bodies,  in  their  most  distant  and  rapid  career,  and  to  survey 
the  whole  chain  of  moral  dispensations,  in  reference  not 
only  to  the  human  race,  but  to  the  inhabitants  of  numerous 
worlds. 

I  shall  conclude  this  part  of  my  subject  with  an  observa¬ 
tion  or  two,  which  may  tend  to  illustrate  and  corroborate 
the  preceding  remarks. 

In  the  first  place,  it  may  be  remarked,  that  our  knowledge 
in  the  future  world,  will  not  be  diminished,  but  increased  to 
an  indefinite  extent.  This  is  expressly  declared  in  the  Sa¬ 
cred  Records.  “  Now  we  see  through  a  glass  darkly,  but 
then  face  to  face.  Now  we  know  in  part,  but  then  shall 
we  know,  even  as  also  we  are  known.”  1  Cor.  xiii.  12. — 
This  passage  intimates,  not  only  that  our  knowledge,  in  a 
future  state,  shall  be  enlarged,  but  that  it  shall  be  increased 
to  an  extent  to  which  we  can,  at  present,  affix  no  limits. 
And  if  our  intellectual  views  shall  be  immensely  expanded 
in  the  realms  of  light,  we  may  rest  assured  that  all  those 
branches  of  useful  science  which  assist  us  in  exploring  the 
operations  of  the  Almighty,  will  not  only  be  cultivated,  but 
carried  to  their  highest  pitch  of  perfection.  For  the  facul¬ 
ties  we  now  possess  will  not  only  remain  in  action,  but  will 
be  strengthened  and  invigorated  ;  and  the  range  of  objects 
on  which  they  will  be  employed  will  be  indefinitely  extend¬ 
ed.  To  suppose  otherwise,  would  be  to  suppose  man  to  be 
deprived  of  his  intellectual  powers,  and  of  the  faculty  of 

15* 


174 


the  philosophy  of  A  future  state. 


worlTi  gWL  as  16  £'"tered  the  confines  of  the  eternal 
world.  W  hen  we  enter  that  world,  we  carry  with  us  the 
moral  and  intellectual  iacuhies,  of  which  we  are  now  con- 

rZlT*'  i°\S  Wlth  them’  a11  lhose  ideas  and  all  that 
knowledge  which  we  acquired  in  the  present  state.  To 

magine  that  our  present  faculties  will  be  essentially  chang- 
ed,  and  the  ideas  we  have  hitherto  acquired  totally  lest 
would  be  nearly  the  same  as  to  suppose  that,  on  entering 
the  invisible  state,  men  will  be  transformed  into  a  new  order 
if  beings,  or  be  altogether  annihilated.  And,  if  our  pre¬ 
sent  know  edge  shall  notbe  destroyed  at  death, it  must  form 
7Tiki°f  thG  fUtUre  improvements  we  may 

view  in  ih  f  dlscoveries  ^at  may  be  unfolded  to  our 
view  in  the  eternal  state. 

dnflgaL’nhe  SUperi,°r  intePectual  views  which  some  indivi 
duals  shaH  possess  beyond  others,  will  constitute  the  princi- 
I d  tmction  between  redeemed  men  in  the  heavenly  state. 
1  he  principal  preparation  for  heaven  will  consist  in  renewed 
dispositions  of  mind-in  the  full  exercise  of  love  to  God 

dfveisified0  .subordinate  holy  intelligences,  and  in  all  the 
diversified  ramifications  of  action  into  which  these  grand 

drl?  bp  necefari  {  dl/erge  When  arrived  at  that  happy 

oild  the  saints  will  feel  themselves  to  be  all  equal, —as 
lev  were  once  “  children  of  disobedience  even  as  others  ” 
as  they  were  all  redeemed  “by  the  precious  blood  of  Christ  ” 
as  they  were  renewed  by  the  influence  of  the  Spirit  of  grace, 

„  they  stand  in  the  relation  of  brethren  in  Chrisfl  and 
sons  and  daughters  of  the  Lord  God  Almighty,”  as  they 
are  the  companions  of  angels,  and  kings  and  priests  to  the 
God  and  Father  of  all.  Without  the  exerej  of  holy  did! 
positions,  heaven  could  not  exist,  although  its  inhabftants 
had  leached  the  highest  pitch  of  intellectual  improvement- 
--and  all  who  shall  ultimately  be  admitted  into  that  happy 
state,  will  feel  that  they  are  eternally  indebted  for  the  privi¬ 
leges  and  the  felicity  they  enjoy,  to  “Him  that  sits  upon  the 

*Ancld  Welsh  minister,  while  one  day  pursuing  his  studies  h;a 
wife  being  in  the  room,  was  suddenly  interrupted  by  her  askino-  him  a 
S  jo'lmT’  ”h,c;  ha’  T  b"„  so  satisfaMorik  answered— 

wttho«  E/„r  r  "T  kn0'''"  to  other  in  l,ea. 

you  flunk  we  shall  be  greater  fouls  there,  than  we  are  here'?”— iFtho 
reader  keep  in  mind  that  our  knowledge  in  heaven  will  Kn'  „  f 

and  not  diminished;  or,  in  other  words  that  we  shall  not  be  “  ore^tm 
tools  there  than  we  are  horn  ,5  ho  min  i  a  ^  gicaior 

that  I  have  hitherto  stated  on ’this  subjlcL  ^  58  t0  a^reeiate  a!1 


GENERAL  REMARKS. 


175 


throne,  and  to  the  Lamb  who  was  slain,  and  redeemed  them 
to  God  by  his  blood.”  But,  notwithstanding,  there  will  be 
a  considerable  difference,  at  least,  in  the  first  instance,  in 
regard  to  the  expansion  of  their  intellectual  views.  In  this 
point  of  view,  it  is  impossible  to  suppose  that  they  can  be 
all  equal.  Suppose  a  negro  slave,  who  had  been  recently 
converted*to  Christianity,  and  a  profound  Christian  philoso¬ 
pher,  to  enter  the  eternal  world  at  the  same  time,  is  it  rea¬ 
sonable  to  believe,  that  there  would  be  no  difference  in  the 
amplitude  of  their  intellectual  views  ?  They  would  both 
feel  themselves  delivered  from  sin  and  sorrow,  they  would 
be  filled  with  admiration  and  wonder  at  the  new  scenes 
which  opened  to  their  view,  and  would  be  inspired  with  the 
most  lively  emotions  of  humility  and  reverence  ;  but  if  each 
of  them  carried  along  with  him  that  portion  of  knowledge 
which  he  acquired  in  the  present  life,  there  behoved  to  be 
a  considerable  difference  in  the  comprehension  of  their 
views  and  the  range  of  their  intellectual  faculties;  unless 
we  suppose  that,  a  change  amounting  to  a  miracle  was  ef¬ 
fected  in  the  mind  of  the  negro,  whose  mental  views  were 
previously  circumscribed  within  the  narrowest  limits. 
And,  to  suppose  such  a  miracle  wrought  in  every  individu¬ 
al  case,  would  not  only  be  contrary  to  every  thing  we 
know  of  the  general  plan  of  the  Divine  procedure,  but 
would  destroy  almost  every  motive  that  should  now  induce 
us  to  make  progress  “in  the  knowledge  of  our  Lord  and 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ,”  and  in  our  views  of  the  works  and 
dispensations  of  the  Almighty.  In  the  course  of  ages, 
indeed,  the  negro  may  equal  the  philosopher  in  the  extent 
of  hi£  intellectual  acquisitions  ;  but,  in  the  first  instance, 
both  Scripture*  and  reason  declare,  that  a  difference  must 
exist,  unless  the  laws  which  govern  the  intellectual  world 
be  entirely  subverted.  Can  we  suppose,  for  a  moment, 
that  an  ignorant  profligate,  who  has  been  brought  to  re¬ 
pentance,  and  to  “  the  knowledge  of  the  truth,”  only  a  few 
hours  before  his  entrance  into  the  world  of  spirits,  shall, 
at  the  moment  he  has  arrived  in  the  world  of  bliss,  acquire 
those  enlarged  conceptions  of  Divine  truth,  which  an  Owen, 
a  Watts,  a  Doddridge,  or  a  Dwight,  attained  at  the  same 
stage  of  their  existence?  or  that  a  Hottentot  who  had  been 
brought  to  the  knowledge  of  Christianity,  only  during  the 
last  month  of  his  life,  shall  enter  into  heaven  with  the  ex- 

*  See  Dan.  xii.  3.  1  Cor.  xv.  41,  42.  Matt.  xxv.  14,  &c. 


176  THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 

pansive  views  of  a  Newton  ora  Boyle?  Such  a  supposi¬ 
tion  would  involve  a  reflection  on  the  wisdom  of  the  Divine 
administration,  and  would  lead  us  to  conclude,  that  all  the 
labour  bestowed  by  the  illustrious  characters,  now  alluded 
to,  in  order  to  improve  in  the  knowledge  of  Divine  subjects, 
was  quite  unnecessary,  and  even  somewhat  approaching  to 
egregious  trifling. 

Not  only  will  the  views  of  the  saints  in  heaven  be  diffe¬ 
rent  in  point  of  expansion  and  extent,  but  their  love  to 
God,  and  the  virtues  and  graces  which  flow  from  this  prin¬ 
ciple,  will  be  diminished  or  increased,  or,  at  least,  some¬ 
what  modified  by  the  narrowness  or  expansion  of  their 
intellectual  views.  If  it  be  admitted  that,  the  more  we 
know  of  God  the  more  ardently  shall  we  love  him, — it  will 
follow,  that  in  proportion  as  we  acquire  a  comprehensive 
and  enlightened  view  of  the  operations  of  God  in  the  works 
of  creation,  in  the  scheme  of  Providence,  and  in  the  plan 
of  redemption,  in  a  similar  proportion  will  our  love  and 
adoration  of  his  excellencies  be  ardent  and  expansive.  In 
this  point  of  view,  the  “the  saints  in  light”  will  make  im¬ 
provement  in  holiness  throughout  all  the  ages  of  eternity, 
though,  at  every  stage  ef  their  existence,  they  will  enjoy 
pure  and  unmingled  bliss.  Every  science  they  cultivate, 
and  every  stage  to  which  they  advance  in  intellectual  im¬ 
provement,  will  enable  them  to  discover  new  glories  in  the 
Divine  character,  Avhich  will  raise  their  affections  to  God 
still  higher,  and  render  their  conformity  to  his  moral  image 
more  complete. 

It  has  frequently  been  a  subject  of  discussion  among  theo¬ 
logians,  “  Whether  there  shall  be  degrees  of  glory  in  hea¬ 
ven. '*  This  question  may  be  easily  settled,  if  there  be  any 
weight  in  the  remarks  and  considerations  now  stated.  In 
so  far  as  there  is  a  difference  in  the  vigour  and  expansion  of 
the  intellectual  powers,  and  in  the  amplitude  of  objects  they 
are  enabled  to  embrace,  in  so  far  may  there  be  said  to  be 
“  degrees  of  glory and  a  superiority,  in  this  respect,  may  be 
considered  as  the  natural  reward  which  accompanies  the 
diligent  improvement  of  our  time  and  faculties  upon  earth, 
though  such  a  distinction  can  never  be  supposed  to  produce 
any  disposition  approaching  to  envy,  as  so  frequently  hap¬ 
pens  in  the  present  state.  On  the  contrary,  it  may  be  sup¬ 
posed  to  produce  a  holy  emulation  to  improve  every  faculty 
to  cultivate  every  branch  of  celestial  science,  and  to  increase 
in  the  knowledge  of  God.  In  corroboration  of  these  views 


DEGREES  OF  GLORY. 


177 


we  are  told  in  Scripture,  that  the  reward  bestowed  on  those 
servants  to  whom  talents  were  intrusted,  was  in  proportion 
to  the  improvement  they  had  made;  and  that,  at  the  close  of 
time,  the  saints  will  present  an  appearance  analogous  to 
that  of  the  spangled  firmament;  for  “as  one  star  differeth 
from  another  star  in  glory,  so  also  is  the  resurrection  from 
the  dead.”  And  the  reason  of  this  difference  is  intimated  by 
the  prophet  Daniel,  “  They  that  excel  in  wisdom  shall  shine 
as  the  brightness  of  the  firmament;  and  they  that  turn  many 
to  righteousness  as  the  stars  for  ever  and  ever.” 

If  the  remarks  now  stated  have  any  solid  foundation,  it 
will  follow,  that  what  is  generally  termed  human  science , 
ought  not  to  be  indiscriminately  considered  as  having  a  re¬ 
lation  merely  to  the  present  world.  Such  an  idea  would 
tend  to  damp  our  ardour  in  the  prosecution  of  scientific 
knowledge,  and  immensely  to  lessen  its  value.  He  who 
prosecutes  science  as  a  subject  of  speculation  merely  in 
reference  to  the  contracted  span  of  human  life,  acts  from 
very  mean  and  narrow  views,  and  may  be  considered,  in 
some  points  of  view,  as  little  superior  to  the  avaricious  man 
whose  mind  is  completely  absorded  in  the  acquisition  of  the 
perishing  treasures  of  this  world.  The  Christian  philoso¬ 
pher,  who  traces  the  perfections  and  the  agency  of  God  in 
every  object  of  his  investigation,  ought  to  consider  his  pre¬ 
sent  pursuits  as  the  commencement  of  a  course  of  improve¬ 
ment  which  will  have  no  termination — as  introductory  to 
the  employments  and  the  pleasures  of  a  higher  state  of  ex¬ 
istence — and  as  affording  him  a  more  advantageous  outset 
into  that  better  world  than  happens  to  those  who  are  desti¬ 
tute  of  his  enlarged  views.  For  the  more  we  know  at  pre¬ 
sent  of  the  wonders  of  infinite  power,  wisdom,  and  good¬ 
ness,  in  the  material  works  of  the  Almighty,  it  is  obvious,  that 
the  better  prepared  we  shall  be  for  more  enlarged  contem¬ 
plations  of  them  at  a  future  period,  and  the  greater  pleasure 
shall  we  feel  in  beholding  those  objects  and  operations,  which 
are  now  hid  in  obscurity,  unveiled  to  view. 

In  throwing  out  the  preceding  reflections,  I  am  far  from 
pretending  to  determine  the  particular  arrangements  which 
the  Almighty  has  formed  in  relation  to  our  future  destina¬ 
tion,  or  the  particular  circumstances  which  may  exist  in 
other  worlds.  These  things  lie  altogether  beyond  the  range 
of  our  investigation,  and  must,  therefore,  remain  inscrutable 
in  our  present  state.  But  there  are  certain  general  princi- 


178 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OP  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


pies  or  relations  which  necessarily  flow  from  the  nature  of 
things,  which  must  be  considered  as  included  within  any 
particular  arrangements  which  may  be  formed ;  and,  it  is 
such  general  principles  only  to  which  I  refer.— Nor  should 
it  be  considered  as  presumption,  to  endeavour  to  ascertain 
these  general  principles  or  necessary  relations  of  things. 
The  Creator  evidently  intended  we  should  know  them ; 
since  he  has  exhibited  such  an  immense  variety  of  his  works 
before  us,  and  has  bestowed  upon  us  faculties  adequate  to 
explore  their  magnitude  and  arrangement,  to  investigate  the 
laws  which  direct  their  motions,  and  to  perceive  their  con¬ 
nexion  and  dependency,  and  some  of  the  grand  designs  for 
which  they  were  intended. 


To  every  thing  that  has  just  now  been  stated  in  relation 
to  the  prosecution  of  science  in  the  celestial  world,  I  am 
aware,  it  will  be  objected  by  some,  that  such  knowledge,  if 
it  be  requisite  in  a  future  state,  will  be  acquired  by  imme¬ 
diate  intuition,  or  communicated  in  a  direct  manner  by  the 
Creator  himself. — For  such  an  assumption,  however,  though 
frequently  reiterated,  thek^is  no  foundation  in  any  passage 
of  Scripture  when  rationally  interpreted  ;  and  it  is  repugnant 
to  the  clearest  dictates  of  reason.  It  is  contrary  to  every 
regular  mode  with  which  we  are  acquainted,  by  which 
rational  beings  are  conducted  to  knowledge  and  happiness; 
it  would  imply  a  continued  miracle — it  would  supersede  the 
use  of  the  intellecual  faculty — and  it  would  ultimately 
detract  from  the  felicity  of  intelligent  agents.  For,  a  great 
part  of  the  happiness  of  finite  intelligences  arises  from  the 
gradual  evolution  of  truth,  in  consequence  of  the  exercise 
of  their  rational  powers.  Were  all  our  knowledge  in  a 
future  state  to  be  acquired  by  immediate  intuition,  or  by 
direct  supernatural  communications  from  the  Deity,  our 
rational  faculties  would,  in  many  respects,  be  bestowed  in 
vain.  It  appears  to  be  one  of  the  main  designs  for  which 
these  faculties  were  bestowed,  that  we  might  be  directed  in 
the  prosecution  of  knowledge,  and  led  to  deduce,  from  the 
scenes  of  the  visible  universe,  those  conclusions  which  will 
gradually  expand  our  views  of  the  plans  and  perfections  of 
its  Almighty  Author.  Adam,  when  in  a  state  of  innocence, 
(and  his  condition  in  that  state,  as  a  moral  agent,  was  pre¬ 
cisely  similar  to  the  state  of  good  men  in  a  future  world, 
except  his  liability  to  fall)  was  not  acquainted,  in  the  first 


OBJECTION  OBVIATED. 


no 

instance,  with  every  object  in  the  world  in  which  he  was 
placed,  and  their  various  relations  to  each  other.  He  could 
not  know,  for  example,  the  peculiar  scenery  of  nature 
which  existed  on  the  side  of  the  globe  opposite  to  that  on 
which  he  was  placed.  He  must  have  exercised  his  senses, 
his  locomotive  faculties,  and  his  reasoning  powers,  and 
made  observations  and  experimental  researches  of  various 
kinds,  before  he  became  thoroughly  acquainted  with  the 
structure,  the  order  and  beauty  of  his  terrestrial  habitation. 
For,  to  suppose  man,  in  any  state,  a  mere  passive  subject  of 
intellectual  and  external  impressions,  would  be,  to  reduce 
him  to  something  like  a  mere  machine ;  and  would  imply  a 
subversion  of  all  the  established  laws  which  regulate  the  ope¬ 
rations  of  matter  and  intellect  throughout  the  universe 

We  know,  likewise,  that  truth  is  gradually  devoloped 
even  to  superior  intelligences.  The  manifold  wisdom  of 
God  in  reference  to  the  church,  and  the  plans  of  his  grace 
in  relation  to  the  Gentile  world,  were,  in  some  measure, 
veiled  to  the  angels,  till  the  facts  of  the  death  and.  resurrec¬ 
tion  of  Christ,  and  the  preaching  and  miracles  of  the  Apostles 
were  exhibited  to  their  view  ;*  and  hence  they  are  represent¬ 
ed  as  “  desiring  to  look  into,”  or  prying  with  avidity  into 
the  mysteries  of  redemption  ;  which  evidently  implies,  the 
active  exertion  of  their  powers  of  reason  and  intelligence, 
and  their  gradual  advancement  in  the  knowdedge  of  the 
purposes  and  plans  of  the  Almighty.  And,  if  beings  far 
superior  to  man  in  intellectual  capacity,  acquire  their  know¬ 
ledge  in  a  gradual  manner,  by  reflection  on  the  Divine  dis¬ 
pensations,  and  the  exercise  of  their  mental  powers,  it  is 
unreasonable  to  suppose,  that  man,  even  in  a  higher  sphere 
of  existence,  will  acquire  all  his  knowledge  at  once,  or  with¬ 
out  the  exertion  of  those  intellectual  energies  with  which  he 
is  endowed. 

In  short,  were  the  saints  in  heaven  to  acquire  all  their 
knowledge  as  soon  as  they  entered  on  that  scene  of  happi¬ 
ness,  we  must  suppose  them  endowed  with  capacities,  not 
only  superior  to  the  most  exalted  seraphim,  but  even  ap¬ 
proximating  to  the  infinite  comprehension  of  the  Deity 
himself.  For  the  range  of  investigation  presented  to  inte! 
ligent  beings  is  boundless,  extending  to  all  the  objects  and 
moral  dispensations  of  God,  throughout  the  immensity  of 
his  empire.  And  could  we  suppose  finite  minds  capable  of 


*  F.phes.  iii.  5 — 11 


180  THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 

embracing  the  whole  of  this  range  of  objects  atone  compre¬ 
hensive  grasp,  their  mental  energy  would  soon  be  destroyed, 
and  their  felicity  terminate  ;  for  they  could  look  forward  to 
no  farther  expansion  of  their  views,  nor  to  a  succession  of 
a  new  range  of  objects  and  operations  through  all  the 
future  ages  of  eternity. 


PART  III. 

ON  THE  AIDS  WHICH  THE  DISCOVERIES  OF 
SCIENCE  AFFORD, 

For  enabling  us  to  form  a,  conception  of  the  pfrpetual 
improvement  of  the  celestial  inhabitants  in  knowledge 
and  felicity. 

On  the  subject  of  a  future  world,  and  the  exercises  and 
enjoyments  of  its  inhabitants,  many  foolish  and  inaccurate 
conceptions  have  prevailed,  even  in  the  Christian  world. 
We  are  assured,  that  the  foundation  of  the  felicity  to  be 
enjoyed  in  that  world,  rests  on  the  absence  of  every  evil, 
and  the  attainment  of  moral  perfection — that  the  principle 
of  depravity  must  be  destroyed,  and  the  affections  purified 
and  refined,  before  we  can  enjoy  “the  inheritance  of  the 
saints  in  light.”  These  are  principles  which  are  clearly 
exhibited  in  the  Scriptures,  which  are  accordant  to  ihe  dic¬ 
tates  of  sound  reason,  and  which  are  generally  recognised 
by  the  various  sections  of  the  religious  world.  But  the 
greater  part  of  Christians  rest  contented  with  the  most 
vague  and  incorrect  ideas  of  the  felicity  of  heaven,  and  talk 
and  write  about  it  in  so  loose  and  figurative  a  manner,  as 
can  convey  no  rational  nor  definite  conception  of  the  sub¬ 
lime  contemplations  and  employments  of  celestial  intelli¬ 
gences.  Instead  of  eliciting,  from  the  metaphorical  lan¬ 
guage  of  Scripture,  the  ideas  intended  to  be  conveyed, 
they  endeavour  to  expand  and  ramify  the  figures  employed 
by  the  sacred  writers  still  farther,  heaping  metaphor  upon 
metaphor,  and  epithet  upon  epithet,  and  blending  a  num¬ 
ber  of  discordant  ideas,  till  the  image  or  picture  presented 
to  the  mind  assumes  the  semblance  of  a  splendid  chaotic 
mass,  or  of  a  dazzling  but  undefined  meteor.  The  term 
Glory,  and  its  kindred  epithets,  have  been  reiterated  a  thou¬ 
sand  times  in  descriptions  of  the  heavenly  state; — the  re¬ 
deemed  have  been  represented  as  assembled  in  one  vast 
crowd  above  the  visible  concave  of  the  sky,  adorned  with 
“starry  crowns,”  drinking  at  “crystal fountains,”  and  mak¬ 
ing  “  the  vault  of  heaven  ring”  with  their  loud  acclamations. 
The  Redeemer  himself  has  been  exhibited  as  suspended 
ike  a  statue  in  the  heavens,  above  this  immense  crowd, 

16 


182 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


crowned  with  diadems,  and  encircled  with  a  refulgent 
splendour,  while  the  assembly  of  the  heavenly  inhabitants 
were  incessantly  gazing  on  this  object,  like  a  crowd  of 
spectators  gazing  at  the  motion  of  an  air  balloon,  or  of  a 
splendid  meteor.  Such  representations  are  repugnant  to 
the  ideas  intended  to  be  conveyed  by  the  metaphorical  lan¬ 
guage  of  Inspiration,  when  stripped  of  its  drapery.  They 
can  convey  nothing  but  a  meagre  and  distorted  conception 
of  the  employments  of  the  celestial  state,  and  tend  only  to 
bewilder  the  imagination,  and  to  “darken  counsel  bywords 
without  knowledge.” 

Hence  it  has  happened,  that  certain  infidel  scoffers  have 
been  led  to  conclude,  that  the  Christian  Heaven  is  not  an 
object  to  be  desired;  and  have  frequently  declared,  that 
“  they  could  feel  no  pleasure  in  being  suspended  for  ever  in 
an  ethereal  region,  and  perpetually  singing  psalms  and 
hymns  to  the  Eternal” — an  idea  of  heaven  which  is  too  fre¬ 
quently  conveyed,  by  the  vague  and  destorted  descriptions 
which  have  been  given  of  the  exercises  and  entertainments 
of  the  future  world. 

There  is  an  intimate  connexion  between  the  word  and 
the  works  of  God  :  they  reflect  a  mutual  lustre  on  each 
other;  and  the  discoveries  made  in  the  latter,  are  calculated 
to  expand  our  conceptions  and  to  direct  our  views,  of  the 
revelations  contained  in  the  former.  Without  taking  into 
account  the  sublime  manifestations  of  the  Deity,  exhibited 
in  his  visible  creation,  our  ideas  of  celestial  bliss  must  be 
very  vague  and  confused,  and  our  hopes  of  full  and  perpetual 
enjoyment  in  the  future  state,  extremely  feeble  and  languid. 

. — From  the  very  constitution  of  the  human  mind,  it  appears, 
that  in  order  to  enjoy  uninterrupted  happiness,  without  sa¬ 
tiety  or  disgust,  it  is  requisite  that  new  objects  and  new 
trains  of  thought  be  continually  opening  to  view.  A 
perpetual  recurrence  of  the  same  objects  and  perceptions, 
however  sublime  in  themselves,  and  however  interesting 
and  delightful  they  may  have  been  felt  at  one  period,  can¬ 
not  afford  uninterrupted  gratification  to  minds  endowed  with 
capacious  powers,  and  capable  of  ranging  through  the 
depths  of  immensity.  But  all  the  objects  in  this  sublunary 
world  and  its  environs,  and  all  the  events  recorded  in  sacred 
and  profane  history,  are  not  sufficient  to  occupy  the  ex¬ 
pansive  minds  of  renovated  intelligences  for  a  million  of 
ages,  much  less  throughout  an  endless  duration  of  existence. 
A  series  of  objects  and  of  moral  dispensations,  more  exten- 


WORK  OF  REDEMPTION. 


183 


sive  than  those  immediately  connected  with  the  globe  we 
inhabit,  must,  therefore,  be  supposed  to  engage  the  atten¬ 
tion  of  “the  spirits  of  just  men  made  perfect,”  during  the 
revolutions  of  eternal  ages;  in  order  that  their  faculties 
may  be  gratified  and  expanded— -that  new  views  of  the  Di¬ 
vine  character  may  be  unfolded — and  that,  in  the  con¬ 
templation  of  his  perfections,  they  may  enjoy  a  perpetuity 
of  bliss. 

It  has  been,  indeed,  asserted  by  some,  that  “  the  myste¬ 
ries  of  redemption  will  be  sufficient  to  afford  scope  for  the 
delightful  investigation  of  the  saints  to  all  eternity.”  It  is 
readily  admitted,  that  contemplations  of  the  Divine  perfec¬ 
tions,  as  displayed  in  human  redemption,  and  of  the  stupen¬ 
dous  facts  which  relate  to  that  economy,  will  blend  them¬ 
selves  with  all  the  other  excercises  of  redeemed  intelligen¬ 
ces.  While  their  intellectual  faculties  are  taking  the  most 
extensive  range  through  the  dominions  of  Him  who  sits 
upon  the  throne  of  universal  nature,  they  will  never  forget 
that  love  “which  brought  them  from  darkness  to  light,”  and 
from  the  depths  of  misery  to  the  splendours  of  eternal 
day.  Their  grateful  and  triumphant  praises  will  ascend  to 
the  Father  of  glory,  and  to  the  Lamb  who  was  slain,  for 
ever  and  ever . — But,  at  the  same  time,  the  range  of  objects 
comprised  within  the  scheme  of  redemption,  in  its  reference 
to  human  beings,  cannot  be  supposed,  without  the  aid  of 
other  objects  of  contemplation,  to  afford  full  and  uninter¬ 
rupted  scope  to  the  faculties  of  the  saints  in  heaven, 
throughout  an  unlimited  duration. — This  will  appear,  if  we 
endeavour  to  analyze  some  of  the  objects  presented  to  our 
view  in  the  economy  of  redemption. 

In  the  first  place,  it  may  be  noticed,  that  a  veil  of  mystery 
surrounds  several  parts  of  the  plan  of  redemption.  “  God 
manifested  in  the  flesh,”  the  intimate  union  of  the  eternal 
self-existent  Deity  with  “the  man  Christ  Jesus,” — is  a  mys¬ 
tery  impenetrable  to  finite  minds.  But  the  eternity,  the 
omnipresence,  and  the  omniscience  of  the  Deity,  are  equal¬ 
ly  mysterious ;  for  they  are  equally  incomprehensible,  and 
must  for  ever  remain  incomprehensible  to  all  limited  intel¬ 
ligences.  It  is  equally  incomprehensible,  that  a  sensitive 
being  should  exist,  furnished  with  all  the  organs  and  func¬ 
tions  requisite  for  animal  life,  and  yet  of  a  size  ten  thousand 
times  less  than  a  mite.  These  are  facts  which  must  be  ad¬ 
mitted  on  the  evidence  of  sense  and  of  reason,  but  they  lie 
altogether  beyond  the  sphere  of  our  comprehension. — Now, 


1  TiIE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 

an  object  which  involves  a  mystery  cannot  be  supposed  to 
exercise  and  entertain  the  mind  through  eternity,  consider¬ 
ed  simply  as  incomprehensible,  without  being  associated 
with  other  objects  which  lie  within  the  range  of  finite  com¬ 
prehension;  otherwise,  reflections  on  the  eternity  and  om¬ 
nipresence  of  God,  considered  purely  as  abstractions  of  the 
m  ij  ^le  intellectual  faculties,  in  the  future 

world,  in  as  high  a  degree  as  any  thing  that  is  mysterious 
m  the  scheme  of  redemption.  But  it  is  quite  evident,  that 
perpetual  reflections  on  infinite  space  and  eternal  duration, 
abstractly  considered,  cannot  produce  a  very  high  degree  of 
mental  enjoyment,  unless  when  considered  in  their  relation 
to  objects  more  definite  and  comprehensible.  Such  con¬ 
templations,  however,  will,  doubtless,  be  mingled  with  all 
the  other  views  and  investigations  of  the  saints  in  the 
heavenly  world.  .  In  proportion  as  they  advance  through 
myriads  of  ages  in  the  course  of  unlimited  duration,  and  in 
proportion  to  the  enlarged  views  they  will  acquire,  of  the 
distances  and  magnitudes  of  the  numerous  bodies  which 
diversify  the  regions  of  the  universe,  their  ideas  of  infinite 
space,  and  of  eternal  duration,  will  be  greatly  expanded.  For 
we  can  acquire  ideas  of  the  extent  of  space,  only  by  com  paring 
the  distances  and  bulks  of  material  objects  with  one  another,— 
and  of  duration,  by  the  trains  of  thought,  derived  from  sensible 
objects,  which  pass  through  our  minds,  and  from  the  periodical 
revolutions  of  material  objects  around  us.— The  same 
things  may  be  affirmed,  in  relation  to  all  that  is  mysterious 
in  the  economy  of  human  redemption ;— and,  if  what  has 
been  now  said  be  admitted,  it  will  follow,  that  such  myste¬ 
ries,  considered  merely  as  incomprehensible  realities,  could 
not  afford  a  rapturous  train  of  thought  to  entertain  the  mind 
throughout  the  ages  of  eternity.  It  is  definite  and  tangible 
objects,  and  not  abstract  mysteries,  that  constitute  the 
proper  subject  of  contemplation  to  a  rational  mind.  For 
although  we  were  to  ponder  on  what  is  incomprehensible, 
such  as  the  eternity  of  God,  for  millions  of  years,  we  should 
be  as  lar  from  comprehending  it,  or  acquiring  any  new  ideas 
respecting  it,  at  the  end  of  such  a  period,  as  at  the  present 
moment. 

In  the  next  place,  redemption  may  be  considered  in  to- 
Cerence  to  the  important  facts  connected  with  it,  in  which 
point. of  view,  chiefly,  it  becomes  a  tangible  object  for  the 
exc  i  ( ise  of  the  moral  and  intellectual  powers  of  man.— 
These  facts  relate  either  to  the  “man  Christ  Jesus,  the 


WORK  OF  REDEMPTION.  185 

Mediator  between  God  and  man,”  or  to  the  saints  whose  re¬ 
demption  he  procured.  The  general  facts  which  relate  to 
Christ,  while  he  sojourned  in  our  world,  are  recorded  in  the 
New  Testament  by  the  Evangelists.  These  comprehend 
his  miraculous  conception,  and  the  circumstances  which  at¬ 
tended  his  birth;  his  private  residence  in  Nazareth;  his 
journeys  as  a  public  teacher  through  the  land  of  Judea  ;  his 
miracles,  sufferings,  crucifixion,  resurrection,  and  ascension 
to  heaven.  There  is  doubtless  a  variety  of  interesting 
facts,  besides  those  recorded  in  the  Gospels,  with  which  it 
would  be  highly  gratifying  to  become  acquainted  ; — such  as, 
the  manner  in  which  he  spent  his  life,  from  the  period  of 
the  first  dawnings  of  reason,  to  the  time  of  his  commencing 
his  public  ministrations — the  various  trains  of  thought  that 
passed  through  his  mind — the  mental  and  corporeal  exerci¬ 
ses  in  which  he  engaged — the  social  intercourses  in  which 
he  mingled — the  topics  of  conversation  he  suggested — the 
amusements  (it  any)  in  which  he  indulged — the  pious  exer¬ 
cises  and  sublime  contemplations  in  which  he  engaged,  when 
retired  from  the  haunts  and  the  society  of  men; — and  par¬ 
ticularly  those  grand  and  important  transactions  in  which 
he  has  been  employed,  since  that  moment  when  a  cloud  in* 
terposed  between  his  glorified  body,  and  the  eyes  of  his 
disciples,  after  his  ascent  from  Mount  Olivet. — What  regions 
of  the  material  universe  he  passed  through  in  his  triumphant 
ascent  what  intelligence  of  his  achievements  he  conveyed 
to  other  worlds — what  portion  of  the  immensity  of  space, 
or  what  globe  or  material  fabric  is  the  scene  of  his  more 
immediate  residence — what  are  the  external  splendours  and 
peculiarities  o(  that  glorious  world — what  intercourse  he 
has  with  the  spirits  of  just  men  made  perfect;  with  Enoch 
and  Elijah,  who  are  already  furnished  with  bodies,  and  with 
other  orders  of  celestial  intelligences — what  scenes  and 
movements  will  take  place  in  that  world,  when  he  is  about 
to  return  to  our  terrestrial  sphere,  to  summon  all  the  tribes 
of  men  to  the  general  judgment?  The  facts  in  relation  to 
these,  and  similar  circumstances,  still  remain  to  be  disclos 
ed,  and  the  future  details  which  may  be  given  of  such  in¬ 
teresting  particulars,  cannot  fail  to  be  highly  gratifying  to 
every  one  of  the  “redeemed  from  among  men.”  But  still, 
it  must  be  admitted,  that  although  the  details  respecting 
each  of  the  facts,  to  which  I  allude,  were  to  occupy  the  pe¬ 
riod  of  a  thousand  years,  the  subject  would  soon  be  ex¬ 
hausted,  if  other  events  and  circumstances,  and  another 

10* 


IfeG 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTUF>E  STATE. 


train  of  divine  dispensations  were  not  at  the  same  time 
presented  to  view;  and  the  future  periods  of  eternal  dura¬ 
tion  would  be  destitute  of  that  variety  and  novelty  of  pros¬ 
pect  which  are  requisite  to  secure  perpetual  enjoyment. 

The  other  class  of  facts  relates  to  the  redeemed  them¬ 
selves,  and  comprehends  those  diversified  circumstances  in' 
the  course  of  providence,  by  means  of  which  they  were 
brought  to  the  knowledge  of  salvation,  and  conducted 
through  the  scenes  of  mortality  to  the  enjoyment  of  endless 
felicity.  These  will,  no  doubt,  afford  topics  of  interesting 
discourse,  to  diversify  and  enliven  the  exercises  of  the 
saints  in  heaven.  But  the  remark  now  made  in  reference 
to  the  other  facts  alluded  to  above,  is  equally  applicable 
here.  The  series  of  Divine  dispensations  towards  every 
individual,  though  different  in  a  few  subordinate  particulars, 
partakes  of  the  same  character,  and  wears  the  same  gene¬ 
ral  aspect.  But  although  the  dispensations  of  Providence 
towards  every  one  of  the  redeemed  were  as  different  from 
another  as  is  possible  to  conceive,  and  although  a  hundred 
years  were  devoted  to  the  details  furnished  by  every 

saint,  eternity  would  not  be  exhausted  by  such  themes 
alone.  J 


Again,  it  has  been  frequently  asserted,  that  the  saints  in 
heaven  will  enjoy  perpetual  rapture  in  continually  gazimr 
on  the  glorified  humanity  of  Christ  Jesus.  The  descrip- 
tions  sometimes  given  of  this  circumstance,  convey  the  idea 
of  a  vast  concourse  of  spectators  gazing  upon  a  resplen- 
dent  figure  placed  upon  an  eminence  in  the  midst  of  them, 
whl^b  surely,  must  convey  a  very  imperfect  and  distorted 
idea  of  the  sublime  employments  of  the  saints  in  light.  The 
august  splendours  of  the  “man  Christ  Jesus,”  the  exalted 
station  he  holds  in  the  upper  world,  the  occasional  inter¬ 
course  which  all  his  saints  will  hold  with  him,  the  lectures 
on  the  plans  and  operations  of  Deity  with  which  he  may 

fmnp  T  hCm’  tlr  resPlende»t  scenes  to  which  he  may 
g  de  them,— and  many  other  circumstances— wdll  ex¬ 
cite  \he  most  rapturous  admiration  of  Him  who  is  “the 

bo'fv  o’fSChf-  ‘,hC  Father’S  ^’’-But,  X  glorified 
“  ma‘enal  ^stance,  ami  consequently, 
T  "  portion  of  space,  it  cannot  be  supposed 

reave,.  T^'T-  lhe  view  of  cveT  inhabUant  „f 

hat  bod7hnd  a  hOUgh  11  'vere’  thfe  material  splendours  of 
at  body,  however  august  and  astonishing,  cannot  b^  sun- 

posed  to  afford  new  and  varied  gratification’,  throughout  iL 


OBJECTS  OF  CONTEMPLATION  IN  HEAVEN.  187 


endless  succession  of  duration.  He  will  be  chiefly  recog¬ 
nized  as  the  Head  of  the  redeemed  family  of  man,  “in 
whom  are  hid  all  the  treasures  of  wisdom  and  knowledge,” 
who  will  gradually  reveal  the  secret  counsels  of  God,  and 
direct  his  saints  to  those  displays  of  Divine  glory  which 
will  enlighten  and  entertain  their  mental  powers.  This 
seems  to  be  intimated  in  such  representations  as  the  follow¬ 
ing, — “The  Lamb  that  is  in  the  midst  of  throne  shall  feed 
them,  and  shall  lead  them  to  living  fountains  of  water.” 
By  directing  their  attention  to  those  objects  in  which  they 
may  behold  the  most  august  displays  of  Divine  perfection, 
and  teaching  them  in  what  points  of  view  they  ought  to  be 
contemplated,  and  what  conclusions  they  ought  to  deduce 
from  them,  “he  will  feed”  the  minds  of  his  people  with 
Divine  knowledge,  and  “lead  them”  to  those  sublime  and 
transporting  trains  of  thought,  which  will  fill  them  with  “joy 
unspeakable  and  full  of  glory.” 

Thus  it  appears,  that  neither  the  mysteries,  nor  the  lead¬ 
ing  facts  connected  with  the  plan  of  redemption,  ivhen  con¬ 
sidered  merely  in  relation  to  human  beings — can  be  suppos¬ 
ed  to  be  the  principal  subjects  of  contemplation  in  the 
heavenly  state,  nor  sufficient  to  produce  those  diversified 
gratifications  which  are  requisite  to  insure  perpetual  enjoy¬ 
ment  to  the  expanded  intellects  of  redeemed  men  in  the 
future  world — though  such  contemplations  will  undoubtedly 
be  intermingled  with  all  the  other  intellectual  surveys  of 
the  saints  in  glory. 

I  now  proceed  to  the  principal  object  in  view,  namely,  to 
inquire,  what  other  objects  will  employ  the  attention  of 
good  men  in  the  world  to  come,  and  what  light  the  material 
works  of  God,  which  have  been  unfolded  to  our  view,  tend 
to  throw  upon  this  subject. 

The  foundation  of  the  happiness  of  heavenly  intelligences 
being  laid  in  the  destruction  of  every  principle  of  moral 
evil,— in  the  enjoyment  of  moral  perfection — and  in  the 
removal  of  every  physical  impediment  to  the  exercise  of 
their  intellectual  powers — they  will  be  fitted  for  the  most 
profound  investigations,  and  for  the  most  enlarged  contem¬ 
plations.  And  one  of  their  chief  employments,  of  course, 
will  be,  to  investigate,  contemplate,  and  admire  the  glory  of 
the  Divine  perfections.  Hence  it  is  declared  in  Scripture 
as  one  of  the  privileges  of  the  saints  in  light,  that  “  they 
shall  see  God  as  he  is” — that  “  they  shall  see  his  face” — and 


188 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


that  “  they  shall  behold  his  glory,” — which  expressions,  and 
others  of  similar  import,  plainly  intimate,  that  they  shall 
enjoy  a  clearer  vision  of  the  Divine  glory  than  in  the  present 
state.  But  how  is  this  vision  to  be  obtained  ?  The  Deity, 
being  a  spirital  uncompounded  substance,  having  no  visible 
form,  nor  sensible  quantities,  “  inhabiting  eternity,”  and 
filling  immensity  with  his  presence — his  essential  glory  can¬ 
not  form  an  object  for  the  direct  contemplation  of  any  finite 
intelligence.  His  glory ,  or,  in  other  words,  the  grandeur 
of  his  perfections,  can  be  traced  only  in  the  external  manifes¬ 
tation  which  he  gives  of  himself  in  the  material  creation 
which  his  power  has  brought  into  existence — in  the  various 
orders  of  intelligences  with  which  he  has  peopled  it— and 
in  his  moral  dispensations  towards  all  worlds  and  beings 
which  now  exist,  or  may  hereafter  exist,  throughout  his 
boundless  empire. 

It  is  in  this  point  of  view,  that  our  knowledge  of  the  ma¬ 
terial  universe  assists  our  conceptions  of  the  scenes  of  a 
future  state,  and  throws  a  refulgence  of  light  on  the  employ¬ 
ments,  and  the  uninterrupted  pleasures  of  the  redeemed  in 
heaven.  By  the  discoveries  of  modern  science,  in  the 
distant  regions  of  space,  we  are  fully  assured,  that  the  attri¬ 
butes  of  the  Deity  have  not  been  exercised  solely  in  the  con¬ 
struction  of  our  sublunary  sphere,  and  of  the  aerial  heavens 
with  which  it  is  encompassed,  nor  his  providential  regards 
confined  to  the  transactions  of  the  frail  beings  that  dwell 
upon  its  surface,  but  extend  to  the  remotest  spaces  of  the 
universe.  We  know,  that  far  beyond  the  limits  of  our  ter¬ 
restrial  abode,  the  Almighty  has  displayed  his  omnipotence 
in  framing  worlds  which,  in  magnitude,  and  in  splendour  of 
accompaniments,  far  surpass  this  globe  on  which  we  dwell. 
The  eleven  planetary  bodies  which,  in  common  with  the 
earth,  revolve  about  the  sun,  contain  a  mass  of  matter  two 
thousand  five  hundred  times  greater,  and  an  extent  of  sur¬ 
face  sufficient  to  support  an  assemblage  of  inhabitants  three 
hundred  times  more  numerous  than  in  the  world  which  we 
inhabit.  The  Divine  wisdom  is  also  displayed  in  reference 
to  these  vast  globes, — in  directing  their  motions,  so  as  to 
produce  a  diversity  of  seasons,  and  a  regular  succession  of 
day  and  night — in  surrounding  some  of  them  with  moons, 
and  with  luminous  rings  of  a  magnificent  size,  to  adorn  their 
nocturnal  heavens,  and  to  reflect  a  mild  radiance  in  the 
absence  of  the  sun — in  encompassing  them  with  atmospheres, 
and  diversifying  their  surface  with  mountains  and  plains. 


PLANETARY  SYSTEM. 


189 


These  and  other  arrangements,  which  indicate  special  con¬ 
trivance  and  design,  show,  that  those  bodies  are  destined 
by  the  Creator  to  be  the  abodes  of  intellectual  beings,  who 
partake  of  his  bounty,  and  offer  to  him  a  tribute  ot  adora¬ 
tion  and  praise. 

Although  no  other  objects  were  presented  to  our  view, 
except  those  to  which  I  now  allude,  and  which  are  contained 
within  the  limits  of  our  system,  yet  even  here — within  this 
small  province  of  the  kingdom  of  Jehovah — a  grand  and  di¬ 
versified  scene  is  displayed  for  the -future  contemplation  of 
heavenly  intelligences.  But  it  is  a  fact  which  cannot  be 
disputed,  that  the  sun  and  all  his  attendant  planets  form  but 
a  small  speck  in  the  map  of  the  universe.  How  great  soever 
this  earth,  with  its  vast  continents  and  mighty  oceans,  may 
appear  to  our  eye, — how  stupendous  soever  the  great  globe 
of  Jupiter,  which  would  contain  within  its  bowels  a  thou¬ 
sand  worlds  as  large  as  ours — and  overwhelming  as  the  con¬ 
ception  is,  that  the  sun  is  more  than  a  thousand  times  larger 
■than  both, — yet,  were  they  this  moment  detached  from  their 
spheres,  and  blotted  out  of  existence,  there  are  worlds  within 
the  range  of  the  Almighty’s  empire  where  such  an  awful 
catastrophe  would  be  altogether  unknown.  Nay,  were  the 
whole  cubical  space  occupied  by  the  solar  system — a  space 
3,600,000,000  miles  in  diameter — to  be  formed  into  a  solid 
globe,  containing  24,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 
cubital  miles,  and  overspread  with  a  brilliancy  superior  to 
that  of  the  sun,  to  continue  during  the  space  of  a  thousand 
years  in  this  splendid  state,  and  then  to  be  extinguished  and 
annihilated — there  are  beings,  who  reside  in  spaces  within 
the  range  of  our  telescopes,  to  whom  its  creation  and  de¬ 
struction  would  be  equally  unknown  ;  and  to  an  eye  which 
could  take  in  the  whole  compass  of  nature,  it  might  be  alto¬ 
gether  unheeded,  or,  at  most,  be  regarded  as  the  appearance 
and  disappearance  of  a  lucid  point  in  an  obscure  corner  of 
the  universe — just  as  the  detachment  of  a  drop  of  water 
from  the  ocean,  or  a  grain  of  sand  from  the  sea-shore  is 
unheeded  by  a  common  observer. 

At  immeasurable  distances  from  our  earth  and  system, 
immense  assemblages  of  shining  orbs  display  their  radiance. 
1  he  amazing  extent  of  that  space  which  intervenes  between 
our  habitation  and  these  resplendent  globes,  proves  their 
immense  magnitude,  and  that  they  shine  not  with  borrowed 
but  with  native  splendour.  From  what  we  know  of  the 
wisdom  and  intelligence  of  the  Divine  Being,  we  may  safely 


190 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


conclude,  that  he  has  created  nothing'  in  vain  ;  and  conse¬ 
quently,  that  these  enormous  globes  of  light  were  not  dis¬ 
persed  through  the  universe,  merely  as  so  many  splendid 
tapers  to  illuminate  the  voids  of  infinite  space.  To  admit, 
for  a  moment,  such  a  supposition,  would  be  inconsistent 
with  the  marks  of  intelligence  and  design  which  are  dis¬ 
played  in  all  the  other  scenes  of  nature  which  lie  within  the 
sphere  of  our  investigation.  It  would  represent  the  Al¬ 
mighty  as  amusing  himself  with  splendid  toys, — an  idea  al¬ 
together  incompatible  with  the  adorable  Majesty  of  Heaven, 
and  which  would  tend  to  lessen  our  reverence  of  his  cha¬ 
racter,  as  the  only  wise  God.  If  every  part  of  nature  in  our 
sublunary  system  is  destined  to  some  particular  use  in  refe¬ 
rence  to  sentient  beings — if  even  the  muddy  waters  of  a 
stagnant  pool  are  replenished  with  myriads  of  inhabitants, 
should  we  for  a  moment  doubt,  that  so  many  thousands  ot 
magnificent  globes  have  a  relation  to  the  accommodation 
and  happiness  of  intelligent  beings;  since  in  every  part  ot 
the  material  system  which  lies  open  to  our  minute  inspec¬ 
tion,  it  appears,  that  matter  exists  solely  for  the  purpose  ot 
sentient  and  intelligent  creatures.  As  the  Creator  is  con¬ 
sistent  in  all  his  plans  and  operations,  it  is  beyond  dispute, 
that  those  great  globes  which  are  suspended  throughout  the 
vast  spaces  of  the  universe  are  destined  to  some  noble  pur¬ 
poses  worthy  of  the  infinite  power,  wisdom,  and  intelligence 
which  produced  them.  And  what  may  these  purposes  be  ? 
Since  most  of  these  bodies  are  of  a  size  equal,  if  not  supe¬ 
rior,  to  our  sun,  and  shine  by  their  own  native  light,  we  are 
led  by  analogy  to  conclude,  that  they  are  destined  to  sub¬ 
serve  a  similar  purpose  in  the  system  of  nature— to  pour  a 
flood  of  radiance  on  surrounding  worlds,  and  to  regulate 
their  motions  by  their  attractive  influence.  So  that  each  of 
these  luminaries  may  be  considered,  not  merely  as  a  world, 
but  as  the  centre  of  thirty,  sixty,  or  a  hundred  worlds,  among 
which  they  distribute  light,  and  heat,  and  comfort.* 

.  *  The  author  will  have  an  opportunity  of  illustrating  this  subject 
in  minute  detail,  in  a  work  entitled  “  The  scenery  of  the  Heavens’ 
Displayed,  with  the  view  of  proving  and  illustrating  the  doctrine  of 
a  Plurality  of  Worlds;”  in  which  the  positions  here  assumed  will 
be  shown  to  have  the  force  of  a  moral  demonstration,  on  the  samo 
general  principles  by  which  we  prove  the  being  of  a  God  and  the  im¬ 
mortality  of  man.  In  this  work,  all  the  known  facts  in  relation  to 
Descriptive  Astronomy ,  and  the  structure  of  the  Heavens,  will  be  par¬ 
ticularly  detailed,  and  accompanied  with  original  remarks  and  moral 
and  religious  reflections,  so  as  to  form  a  comprehensive  Compcnd  of 
Pi^mlar  Astronomy. 


NUMBER  OF  WORLDS. 


191 


If,  now,  we  attend  to  the  vast  number  of  those  stupendous 
globes,  we  shall  perceive  what  an  extensive  field  of  sublime 
investigation  lies  open  to  all  the  holy  intelligences  that  exist 
in  creation.  When  we  lift  our  eyes  to  the  nocturnal  sky, 
we  behold  several  hundreds  of  these  majestic  orbs,  arranged 
in  a  kind  of  magnificent  confusion,  glimmering  from  afar  on 
this  obscure  corner  of  the  universe.  But  the  number  of 
stars,  visible  to  the  vulgar  eye,  is  extremely  small,  compar¬ 
ed  with  the  number  which  has  been  descried  by  metins  of 
optical  instruments.  In  a  small  portion  of  the  sky,  not 
larger  than  the  apparent  breadth  of  the  moon,  a  greater 
number  of  stars  has  been  discovered  than  the  naked  eye 
can  discern  throughout  the  whole  vault  of  heaven.  In  pro¬ 
portion  as  the  magnifying  powers  of  the  telescope  are  in¬ 
creased,  in  a  similar  proportion  do  the  stars  increase  upon 
our  view.  They  seem  ranged  behind  one  another  in  bound¬ 
less  perspective,  as  far  as  the  assisted  eye  can  reach,  leaving 
us  no  room  to  doubt,  that,  were  the  powers  of  our  telescopes 
increased  a  thousand  times  more  than  they  now  are,  millions 
beyond  millions,  in  addition  to  what  we  now  behold,  would 
start  up  before  the  astonished  sight.  Sir  William  Herschel 
informs  us,  that,  when  viewing  a  certain  portion  of  the 
Milky  Way ,  in  the  course  of  seven  minutes,  more  than  fifty 
thousand  stars  passed  across  the  field  of  his  telescope, — 
and  it  has  been  calculated,  that  within  the  range  of  such  an 
instrument,  applied  to  all  the  different  portions  of  the  firma¬ 
ment,  more  than  eighty  millions  of  stars  would  be  rendered 
visible. 

Here,  then,  within  the  limits  of  that  circle  which  human 
vision  has  explored,  the  mind  perceives,  not  merely  eighty 
millions  of  worlds,  but,  at  least  thirty  times  that  number ; 
for  every  star,  considered  as  a  sun,  may  be  conceived  to  be 
surrounded  by  at  least  thirty  planetary  globes  ;*  so  that 
the  visible  system  of  the  universe  may  be  stated,  at  the 
lowest  computation,  as  comprehending  within  its  vast  cir¬ 
cumference,  2,400,000,000  of  worlds  !  This  celestial  scene 
presents  an  idea  so  august  and  overwhelming,  that  the  mind 

*  The  solar  system  consists  of  eleven  primary  and  eighteen  sec¬ 
ondary  planets;  in  all  twenty-nine,  besides  more  than  a  hundred 
comets;  and  it  is  probable  that  several  planetary  bodies  exist  within 
the  limits  of  our  system  which  have  not  yet  been  discovered.  Other 
systems  may  probably  contain  a  more  numerous  retinue  of  worlds, 
and  perhaps  of  a  larger  size  than  those  belonging  to  the  system  of  the 
sun. 


193 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


is  confounded,  and  shrinks  back  at  the  attempt  of  forming 
any  definite  conception  of  a  multitude  and  a  magnitude  sS 
far  beyond  the  limits  of  its  ordinary  excursions,  ff  we  can 
form  no  adequate  idea  of  the  magnitude,  the  variety,  and 
economy  of  one  world,  how  can  we  form  a  just  conception 
of  thousands  ?  If  a  single  million  of  objects  of  any  descrip¬ 
tion  presents  an  image  too  vast  and  complex  to"  be  taken 
in  at  one  grasp,  how  shall  we  ever  attempt  to  comprehend 
an  object  so  vast  as  two  thousand  four  hundred  millions  of 
worlds!  None  but  that  Eternal  Mind  which  counts  the 
number  of  tiie  stars,  which  called  them  from  nothing  into 
existence,  and  arranged  them  in  the  respective  stations 
they  occupy,  and  whose  eyes  run  to  and  fro  through  tl  e 
unlimited  extent  of  creation— can  form  a  clear  and  compre¬ 
hensive  conception  of  the  number,  the  order,  and  the  econo¬ 
my  of  this  vast  portion  of  the  system  of  nature. 

Eut  Imre,  even  the  very  feebleness  and  obscurity  of  our 
conceptions  tend  to  throw  a  radiance  on  the  subject  we  are 
attempting  to  illustrate.  The  magnitude  and  incompre¬ 
hensibility  of  the  object,  show  us,  how  many  diversified 
vievvs  of  the  Divine  glory  remain  to  be  displayed;  what  an 
infinite  variety _  of  sublime  scenes  may  be  afforded  for  the 
mind  to  expatiate  upon;  and  what  rapturous  trains  of 
thought,  ever  various,  and  ever  new,  may  succeed  each 
other  without  interruption,  throughout  an  unlimited  dma- 


Let  us  now  endeavour  to  analyze  some  of  the  objects 
presented  to  our  mental  sight,  in  this  vast  assemblage  of 

systems  and  worlds,  which  lie  within  the  sphere  of  human 
vision. 

The  first  idea  that  suggests  itself,  is,  that  they  are  all 
material  structures — in  the  formation  of  which,  infinite 
wisdom  and  goodness  have  been  employed  ;  and  conse¬ 
quently,  they  must  exhibit  scenes  of  sublimity  and  of  exqui¬ 
site  contrivance  worthy  of  the  contemplation  of  every  ra¬ 
tional  being.  If  this  earth,  which  is  an  abode  of  apostate 
men,  and  a  scene  of  moral  depravity,  and  which,  here  and 
there,  has  the  appearance  of  being  the  ruins  of  a  former 
world— -presents  the  variegated  prospect  of  lofty  mountains 
romantic  dells,  and  fertile  plains;  meandering  rivers,  trans¬ 
parent  lakes,  and  spacious  oceans;  verdant  landscapes, 
adorned  with  fruits  and  flowers,  and  a  rich  variety  of  the 
finest  colours,  and  a  thousand  other  beauties  and  sublimities 


'  DIVERSITY  OF  SCENERY  IN  THE  HEAVENS.  193 

that  are  strewed  over  the  face  of  nature — how  grand  and 
magnificent  a  scenery  may  we  suppose,  must  be  presented 
to  the  view,  in  those  worlds  where  moral  evil  has  never 
entered  to  derange  the  harmony  of  the  Creator’s  works 
— where  love  to  the  Supreme,  and  to  one  another, 
fires  the  bosoms  of  all  their  inhabitants,  and  produces  a 
rapturous  exultation,  and  an  incessant  adoration  of  the 
Source  of  happiness!  In  such  worlds,  we  may  justly  con¬ 
ceive,  that  the  sensitive  enjoyments,  and  the  objects  of 
beauty  and  grandeur  which  are  displayed  to  their  view,  as 
far  exceed  the  scenery  and  enjoyments  of  this  world,  as 
their  moral  and  intellectual  qualities  excel  those  of  the  sons 
of  men. 

In  the  next  place,  it  is  highly  reasonable  to  believe,  that 
an  infinite  diversity  of  scenery  exists  throughout  all  the 
worlds  which  compose  the  universe;  that  no  one  of  all  the 
millions  of  systems  to  which  I  have  now  adverted,  exactly 
resembles  another  in  its  construction,  motions,  order,  and 
decorations.  There  appear,  indeed,  to  be  certain  laws  and 
.  phenomena  which  are  common  to  all  the  systems  which 
exist  within  the  limits  of  human  vision.  It  is  highly  proba¬ 
ble,  that  the  laws  of  gravitation  extend  their  influence 
through  every  region  of  space  occupied  by  material  sub¬ 
stances;  and,  it  is  beyond  a  doubt,  that  the  phenomena  of 
vision,  and  the  laws  by  which  light  is  reflected  and  refracted, 
exist  in  the  remotest  regions  which  the  telescope  has  ex¬ 
plored.  For  the  light  which  radiates  from  the  most  distant 
stars  (as  formerly  stated)  is  found  to  be  of  the  same  nature, 
to  move  with  the  same  velocity,  to  be  refracted  by  the  same 
laws,  and  to  exhibit  the  same  colours  as  the  light  which 
proceeds  from  the  sun,  and  is  reflected  from  surrounding 
objects.  The  medium  of  vision  must,  therefore,  be  acted 
upon,  and  the  organs  of  sight  perform  their  functions,  in 
those  distant  regions  in  the  same  manner  as  takes  place  in 
the  system  of  which  we  form  a  part,  or,  at  least,  in  a  man¬ 
ner  somewhat  analogous  to  it.  And  this  circumstance 
shows,  that  the  Creator  evidently  intended  we  should  form 
some  faint  ideas,  at  least,  of  the  general  procedure  of  nature 
in  distant  worlds,  in  order  to  direct  our  conceptions  of  the 
sublime  scenery  of  the  universe,  even  while  we  remain  in 
this  obscure  corner  of  creation.  But,  although  the  visible 
systems  of  the  universe  appear  to  he  connected  by  certain 
general  principles  and  laws  which  operate  throughout  the 
whole,  yet  the  indefinite  modifications  which  these  laws  may 

17 


194 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE* 


receive  m  each  particular  system,  may  produce  an  almost 
infinite  diversity  of  phenomena  in  different  worlds,  so  that 
no  one  department  of  the  material  universe  may  resemble 
another.  Nor  is  it  difficult  to  conceive  how  such  a  diversity 
of  scenery  may  be  produced.  With  regard  to  the  terraque¬ 
ous  globe,— were  its  axis  to  be  shifted,  so  as  to  point  to  a 
different  quarter  of  the  heavens,  or  were  the  angle  which  it 
forms  with  the  ecliptic  to  be  greater  or  less  than  it  now  is, 
the  general  appearance  of  the  firmament  would  be  changed, 
the  apparent  motions  of  the  sun  and  stars,  the  days  'and 
nights,  the  seasons  of  the  year,  and  an  immense  variety  of 

?.~nomena  *n  ear^1  and  heavens  would  assume  a  very 
different  aspect  from  what  they  now  wear.  Were  the  com¬ 
ponent  parts  of  the  atmosphere  materially  altered,  were  its 
refractive  power  much  increased,  or  were  a  greater  portion 
of  caloric  or  of  electricity  introduced  into  its  constitution, 
the  objects  which  diversify  the  landscape  of  the  earth,  and 
the  luminaries  of  heaven,  would  assume  such  a  variety  of 
new  and  uncommon  appearances,  as  would  warrant  the  ap¬ 
plication  of  the  Scripture  expression,  “  a  new  heaven  and  a 
new  earth.”  It  is,  therefore,  easy  to  conceive,  that,  when 
infinite  power  and  wisdom  are  exerted  for  this  purpose, 
every  globe  in  the  universe,  with  its  appendages,  may  be 
constructed  and  arranged  in  such  a  manner  as  to  present 
a  variety  of  beauties  and  sublimities  peculiar  to  itself. 

That  the  Creator  has  actually  produced  this  effect,  is 
rendered  in  the  highest  degree  probable,  from  the  infinite 
variety  presented  to  our  view  in  those  departments  of  na¬ 
ture  which  lie  open  to  our  particular  investigation.  In  the 
animal  kingdom  we  find  more  than  a  hundred  thousand 
different  species  of  living  creatures,  and  about  the  same 
variety  in  the  productions  of  vegetable  nature;  the  mineral 
kingdom  presents  to  us  an  immense  variety  of  earths, 
stones,  rocks,  metals,  fossils,  gems,  and  precious  stones, 
which  are  strewed  in  rich  profusion  along  the  surface,  and 
throughout  the  interior  parts  of  the  globe.  Of  the  indi¬ 
viduals  which  compose  every  distinct  species  of  animated 
beings,  there  is  no  one  which  bears  an  exact  resemblance  to 
another.  Although  the  eight  hundred  millions  of  men  that 
now  people  the  globe,  and  all  the  other  millions  that  have 
existed  since  the  world  began,  were  to  be  compared,  no  two 
individuals  would  be  found  to  present  exactly  the  same 
aspect  in  every  point  of  view  in  which  they  might  be  con¬ 
templated.  In  like  manner,  no  two  horses,  cows,  do^s. 


DIVERSITY  OF  SCENERY  IN  THE  UNIVERSE.  195 

lions,  elephants,  or  other  terrestrial  animals  will  be  found 
bearing  a  perfect  resemblance.  The  same  observations 
will  apply  to  the  scenery  of  lakes,  rivers,  grottos,  and  moun¬ 
tains,  and  to  all  the  diversified  landscapes  which  the  surface 
of  the  earth  and  waters  presents  to  the  traveller,  and  the 
student  of  nature. 

If  from  the  earth,  we  direct  our  views  to  the  other  bodies 
which  compose  our  planetary  system,  we  shall  find  a  simi¬ 
lar  diversity,  so  far  as  our  observations  extend.  From  the 
surface  ot  one  of  the  planets,  the  sun  will  appear  seven 
times  larger,  and  from  the  surface  of  another,  three  hun¬ 
dred  and  sixty  times  smaller  than  he  does  to  us.  One  of 
those  bodies  is  destitute  of  a  moon;  but  from  its  ruddy 
aspect,  either  its  surface  or  its  atmosphere  appears  to  be 
endowed  with  a  phosphorescent  quality,  to  supply  it  with 
light  in  the  absence  of  the  sun.  Another  is  surrounded 
by  four  resplendent  moons,  much  larger  than  ours ;  a  third 
is  supplied  with  six,  and  a  fourth,  with  seven  moons,  and 
two  magnificent  rings  to  reflect  the  light  of  the  sun,  and 
diversify  the  scenery  of  its  sky.  One  of  these  globes  re¬ 
volves  round  its  axis  in  ten,  and  another  in  twenty-three 
hours  and  a  half.  One  of  them  revolves  round  the  sun  in 
eighty-eight,  another  in  two  hundred  and  twenty-four  days; 
a  third  in  twelve  years,  a  fourth  in  thirty,  and  a  fifth  in 
eighty-two  years.  From  all  which,  and  many  other  cir¬ 
cumstances  that  have  been  observed,  an  admirable  variety 
of  phenomena  is  produced,  ot  which  each  planetary  globe 
has  its  own  peculiarity.  Even  our  moon,  which  is  among 
the  smallest  of  the  celestial  bodies,  which  is  the  nearest  to 
us,  and  which  accompanies  the  earth  during  its  revolution 
round  the  sun,  exhibits  a  curious  variety  of  aspect,  differ¬ 
ent  from  what  is  found  on  the  terraqueous  globe.  The 
altitude  of  its  mountains,  the  depth  of  its  vales,  the  conical 
foim  of  its  insulated  rocks,  the  circular  ridges  of  hills 
which  encompass  its  plains,  and  the  celestial  phenomena 
which  are  displayed  in  its  firmament — present  a  scenery 
which,  though  in  some  some  points  resembling  our  own,  is 
yet  remarkably  difierent,  on  the  whole,  from  the  general  as¬ 
pect  of  nature  in  our  terrestrial  habitation. 

If,  therefore,  the  Author  of  nature  act  on  the  same  gene¬ 
ral  principles,  in  other  systems,  as  he  has  done  in  ours — 
which  there  is  every  reason  to  believe,  when  we  consider 
ms  infinite  wisdom  and  intelligence — we  may  rest  assured, 
that  every  one  of  the  ttvo  thousand  four  hundred  millions 


196  THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 

of  worlds  which  are  comprehended  within  the  range  of 
human  vision,  has  a  magnificence  and  glory  peculiar  to  it¬ 
self,  by  which  it  is  distinguished  from  all  the  surrounding 
provinces  of  Jehovah’s  empire.  In  this  view,  we  may  con¬ 
sider  the  language  of  the  Apostle  Paul  as  expressing  not 
only  an  apparent ,  but  a  real  fact.  “There  is  one  glory  of 
the  sun,  and  another  glory  of  the  moon,  and  another  glory 
of  the  stars ;  for  one  star  differ eth from  another  star  in  glo¬ 
ry. ”  To  suppose  that  the  Almighty  has  exhausted  his  om¬ 
nipotent  energies,  and  exhibited  all  the  manifestations  of 
his  glory  which  his  perfections  can  produce,  in  one  system, 
or  even  in  one  million  of  systems,  would  be  to  set  limits  to 
the  resources  of  his  wisdom  and  intelligence,  which  are  infi¬ 
nite  and  incomprehensible.  Hence  we  find  the  sacred 
writers,  when  contemplating  the  numerous  objects  which 
creation  exhibits,  breaking  out  into  such  exclamations  as 
these,  “  How  manifold ,  O  Jehovah,  are  thy  works !  In  wis- 
dom  hast  thou  made  them  all.” 

In  the  next  place, — Besides  the  magnificence  and  variety 
of  the  material  structures  which  exist  throughout  the  uni¬ 
verse,  the  organized  and  intelligent  beings  with  which  they 
are  peopled,  present  a  vast  field  of  delightful  contemplation. 
On  this  general  topic,  the  following  ideas  may  be  taken  into 
consideration  : — 

1.  The  gradations  of  intellect,  or  the  various  orders  of 
intelligences  which  may  people  the  universal  system.  That 
there  is  a  vast  diversity  in  the  scale  of  intellectual  existence, 
may  be  proved  by  considerations  similar  to  those  which  I 
have  already  stated.  Among  sentient  beings,  in  this  world, 
we  find  a  regular  gradation  of  intellect,  from  the  muscle, 
through  all  the  orders  of  the  aquatic  and  insect  tribes,  till 
we  arrive  at  the  dog,  the  monkey,  the  beaver  and  the  ele¬ 
phant,  and  last  of  all,  to  man,  who  stands  at  the  top  of  the 
intellectual  scale,  as  the  lord  of  this  lower  world.  We  per¬ 
ceive,  too,  in  the  individuals  which  compose  the  human  spe¬ 
cies,  a  wonderful  diversity  in  their  powers  and  capacities  of 
intellect,  arising  partly  from  their  original  constitution  of 
mind,  partly  from  the  conformation  of  their  corporeal 
organs,  and  partly  from  the  degree  of  cultivation  they  have 
received.  But  it  would  be  highly  unreasonable  to  admit,  that 
the  most  accomplished  genius  that  ever  adorned  our  race, 

’  was  placed  at  the  summit  of  intellectual  perfection.  On  the 
other  hand,  we  have  reason  to  believe,  that  man,  with  all 


INTELLIGENT  BEINGS. 


19? 


his  noble  powers,  stands  nearly  at  the  bottom  of  the  scale 
of  the  intelligent  creation.  For  a  being  much  inferior  to 
man,  in  the  powers  of  abstraction,  conception,  and  reason¬ 
ing,  could  scarcely  be  denominated  a  rational  creature,  or 
supposed  capable  of  being  qualified  for  the  high  destination 
to  which  man  is  appointed.  As  to  the  number  of  species 
which  diversify  the  ranks  of  superior  intellectual  natures, 
and  the  degrees  of  perfection  which  distinguish  their  diffe¬ 
rent  orders,  we  have  no  data ,  afforded  by  the  contempla¬ 
tion  of  the  visible  universe,  sufficient  to  enable  us  to  form  a 
definite  conception.  The  intellectual  faculties,  even  of  finite 
beings,  may  be  carried  to  so  high  a  pitch  of  perfection,  as 
to  baffle  all  our  conceptions  and  powers  of  description. — 
The  following  description,  in  the  words  of  a  celebrated  Swiss 
naturalist,  may  perhaps  convey  some  faint  idea  of  the  pow¬ 
ers  of  some  of  the  highest  order  of  intelligences  : — 

“To  convey  one’s  self  from  one  place  to  another  with  a 
swiftness  equal  or  superior  to  that  of  light;  to  preserve  one’s 
self  by  the  mere  force  of  nature,  and  without  the  assistance 
of  any  other  created  being  ;  to  be  absolutely  exempted  from 
every  kind  of  change; — to  be  endowed  with  the  most  ex¬ 
quisite  and  extensive  senses  ;  to  have  distinct  perceptions  of 
all  the  attributes  of  matter,  and  of  all  its  modifications  ;  to 
discover  effects  in  their  causes;  to  raise  one’s  self  by  a 
most  rapid  flight  to  the  most  general  principles ;  to  see  in 
the  twinkling  of  an  eye  these  principles ; — to  have  at  the 
same  time,  without  confusion,  an  almost  infinite  number  of 
ideas ;  to  see  the  past  as  distinctly  as  the  present,  and  to 
penetrate  into  the  remotest  futurity;  to  be  able  to  exercise 
all  these  faculties  without  weariness;  these  are  the  various 
outlines  from  which  we  may  draw  a  portrait  of  the  perfec¬ 
tions  of  superior  natures.”  ** 

A  being  possessed  of  faculties  such  as  these,  is  raised  as 
far  above  the  limited  powers  of  man,  as  man  is  raised  above 
the  insect  tribes.  The  Scriptures  assure  us,  that  beings,  ap 
proximating,  in  their  powers  and  perfections,  to  those  now 
stated,  actually  exist,  and  perform  important  offices  under 
the  government  of  the  Almighty.  The  perfections  of  the 

*  This  writer,  in  addition  to  these,  states  the  following  properties  : 
— “  To  be  invested  with  a  power  capable  of  displacing  the  heavenly 
bodies,  or  changing  the  course  of  nature  ;  and  to  be  possessed  of  a 
power  and  skill  capable  of  organizing  matter,  of  forming  a  plant,  an 
animal,  a  world.” — But  I  can  scarcely  think  that  such  perfections  are 
competent  to  any  being  but  the  Supreme. 

17* 


198 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


angelic  tribes,  as  represented  in  Scripture,  are  incomparably 
superior  to  those  of  men.  They  are  represented  as  pos¬ 
sessed  of  powers  capable  of  enabling  them  to  wing  their 
flight  with  amazing  rapidity  from  world  to  world.  For  the  an¬ 
gel  Gabriel,  being  commanded  to  fly  swiftly, while  the  Prophet 
Daniel  was  engaged  in  supplication,  approached  to  him,  be¬ 
fore  he  had  made  an  end  of  presenting  his  requests.  Dur¬ 
ing  the  few  minutes  employed  in  uttering  his  prayer,  this 
angelic  messenger  descended  from  the  celestial  regions  to 
the  country  of  Babylonia.  This  was  a  rapidity  of  motion 
surpassing  the  comprehension  of  the  most  vigorous  imagi¬ 
nation,  and  far  exceeding  even  the  amazing  velocity  of  light. 
— They  have  power  over  the  objects  of  inanimate  nature; 
for  one  of  them  “rolled away  the  stone  from  the  door  of 
the  sepulchre,”  at  the  time  of  Christ’s  resurrection.  They 
are  intimately  acquainted  with  the  springs  of  life,  and  the 
avenues  by  which  they  may  be  interrupted ;  for  an  angel 
slew,  in  one  night,  185,000  of  the  Assyrian  army. — They 
are  perfectly  acquainted  with  all  the  relations  which  subsist 
among  mankind,  and  can  distinguish  the  age  and  character 
of  every  individual  throughout  all  the  families  of  the  earth. 
For  one  of  these  powerful  beings  recognised  all  the  first¬ 
born  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  distinguished  the  Egyptians 
from  the  children  of  Israel,  and  exerted  his  powers  in  their 
destruction.  And,  as  they  are  “ministering  spirits  to  the 
heirs  of  salvation,”  they  must  have  a  clear  perception  of 
the  persons  and  characters  of  those  who  are  the  objects  of 
the  Divine  favour,  and  to  whom  they  are  occasionally  sent 
on  embassies  of  mercy. — They  are  endowed  with  great 
physical  powers  and  energies,  hence  they  are  said  “  to  excel 
■in  strength:”  and  the  phrases,  “a  strong  angel,”  and  “a 
mighty  angel,”  which  are  sometimes  applied  to  them,  are  ex¬ 
pressive  of  the  same  perfection.  Hence  they  are  repre¬ 
sented,  in  the  book  of  the  Revelation,  as  “holding  the  four 
winds  of  heaven,”  as  executing  the  judgements  of  God 
upon  the  proud  despisers  of  his  government,  as  “throwing 
mountains  into  the  sea,”  and  binding  the. prince  of  dark¬ 
ness  with  chains,  and  “casting  him  into  the  bottomless 
pit.” 

They  are  endowed  with  unfading  and  immortal  youth, 
and  experience  no  decay  in  the  vigour  of  their  powers'.  For 
the  angels  who  appeared  to  Mary  at  the  tomb  of  our  Saviour, 
appeared  as  young  men,  though  they  were  then  more  than 
four  thousand  years  old.  During  the  long  succession  of 


VEHICLES  OF  CELESTIAL  INTELLIGENCES.  199 


ages  that  had  passed  since  their  creation,  their  vigour  and 
animation  had  suffered  no  diminution,  nor  decay.  They 
are  possessed  of  vast  powers  of  intelligence.  Hence  they 
are  exhibited  in  the  book  of  Revelation,  as  being  “ full  of 
eyes,”  that  is,  endowed  with  “  all  sense,  all  intellect,  all 
consciousness  ;  turning  their  attention  every  way  ;  behold¬ 
ing  at  once  all  things  within  the  reach  of  their  understand¬ 
ings  ;  and  discerning  them  with  the  utmost  clearness  of  con¬ 
ception.”  The  various  other  qualities  now  stated,  necessa¬ 
rily  suppose  a  vast  comprehension  of  intellect ;  and  the 
place  of  their  residence,  and  the  offices  in  which  they  have 
been  employed,  have  afforded  full  scope  to  their  superior 
powers.  They  dwell  in  a  world  where  truth  reigns  trium¬ 
phant,  where  moral  evil  has  never  entered,  where  substan¬ 
tial  knowledge  irradiates  the  mind  of  every  inhabitant,  where 
the  mysteries  which  involve  the  character  of  the  Eternal 
are  continually  disclosing,  and  where  the  plans  of  his  pro¬ 
vidence  are  rapidly  unfolded.  They  have  ranged  through 
the  innumerable  regions  of  the  heavens,  and  visited  distant 
worlds  for  thousands  of  years ;  they  have  beheld  the  un¬ 
ceasing  variety,  and  the  endless  multitude  of  the  works  of 
creation  and  providence,  and  are,  doubtless,  enabled  to  com¬ 
pare  systems  of  worlds,  with  more  accuracy  and  compre¬ 
hension  than  we  are  capable  of  surveying  villages,  cities, 
and  provinces.  Thus,  their  original  powers  and  capacities 
have  been  expanded,  and  their  vigour  and  activity  strength¬ 
ened  ;  and,  consequently,  in  the  progress  of  duration,  their 
acquisitions  of  wisdom  and  knowledge  must  indefinitely 
surpass  every  thing  that  the  mind  of  man  can  conceive. — 
We  have  likewise  certain  intimations,  that,  among  these 
celestial  beings,  there  are  gradations  of  nature  and  of  office  ; 
since  there  are  among  them  “seraphim  and  cherubim,  arch¬ 
angels,  thrones,  dominions,  principalities,  and  powers,” 
which  designations  are  evidently  expressive  of  their  respec¬ 
tive  endowments,  of  the  stations  they  occupy,  and  of  the 
employments  for  which  they  are  qualified. 

Hence  it  appears,  that  although  we  know  but  little  in  the 
mean  time  of  the  nature  of  that  diversity  of  intellect  which 
prevails  among  the  higher  orders  of  created  beings — the 
intimations  given  in  the  sacred  volume,  and  the  general 
analogy  of  nature,  lead  us  to  form  the  most  exalted  ideas  of 
that  amazing  progression  and  variety  which  reign  through¬ 
out  the  intellectual  universe. 

2.  Not  only  is  there  a  gradation  of  intellect  among  su- 


200 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


perior  beings,  but  it  is  highly  probable,  that  a  similar  gra¬ 
dation  or  variety  obtains,  in  the  form,  the  organization,  and 
the  movements  of  their  corporeal  vehicles. 

The  human  form,  especially  in  the  vigour  of  youth,  is  the 
most  beautiful  and  symmetrical  ot  all  the  forms  of  organized 
beings  with  which  we  are  acquainted;  and,  in  these  respects, 
may  probably  bear  some  analogy  to  the  organical  structures 
of  other  intelligences.  But,  in  other  worlds,  there  may 
exist  an  indefinite  variety,  as  to  the  general  form  of  the 
body  or  vehicle  with  which  their  inhabitants  are  invest¬ 
ed,  the  size,  the  number  and  quality  of  their  organs,  the 
functions  they  perform,  the  splendour  and  beauty  of  their 
aspect,  and  particularly,  in  the  number  and  perfection  or 
their  senses.  Though  there  are  more  than  a  hundred  thou¬ 
sand  species  of  sensitive  beings,  which  traverse  the  earth, 
the  waters,  and  the  air,  yet  they  all  exhibit  a  marked  differ¬ 
ence  in  their  corporeal  forms  and  organization.  Quadrupeds 
exhibit  a  very  different  structure  from  fishes,  and  birds  from 
reptiles;  and  every  distinct  species  of  quadrupeds,  birds, 
fishes,  and  insects,  differs  from  another  in  its  conformation 
and  functions.  It  is  highly  probable,  that  a  similar  variety 
exists,  in  regard  to  the  corporeal  vehicles  of  superior  intel¬ 
ligences  accommodated  to  the  regions  in  which  they  re¬ 
spectively  reside,  the  functions  they  have  to  perform,  and 
the  employments  in  which  they  are  engaged  ;  and  this  we 
find  to  be  actually  the  case,  so  far  as  our  information  ex¬ 
tends.  When  any  of  the  angelic  tribes  were  sent  on  em¬ 
bassies  to  our  world,  we  find,  that,  though  they  generally 
appeared  in  a  shape  somewhat  resembling  a  beautiful  human 
form,  yet,  in  every  instance,  there  appeared  a  marked  dif¬ 
ference  between  them  and  human  beings.  The  angel  who 
appeared  at  the  tomb  of  our  Saviour,  exhibited  a  bright  and 
resplendent  form :  “  His  countenance  was  like  the  bright¬ 
ness  of  lightning,  and  his  raiment  as  white  as  snow,”  glit¬ 
tering  with  an  extraordinary  lustre  beyond  what  mortal 
eyes  could  bear.  The  angel  who  delivered  Peter  from  the 
prison  to  which  he  had  been  confined  by  the  tyranny  of 
Herod,  was  arrayed  in  such  splendour,  that  a  glorious  light 
shone  through  the  whole  apartment  where  the  apostle  was 
bound,  dark  and  gloomy  as  it  was.  That  these  beings  have 
organs  of  speech  capable  of  forming  articulate  sounds,  and 
of  joining  in  musical  strains,  appears  from  the  words  they 
uttered  on  these  and  other  occasions,  and  from  the  song 
they  sung  in  the  plains  of  Bethlehem,  when  they  announced 


VEHICLES  OF  CELESTIAL  INTELLIGENCES. 


201 


the  birth  of  the  Saviour.  They  appear  to  possess  the  pro¬ 
perty  of  rendering  themselves  invisible  at  pleasure  ;  for  the 
angel  that  appeared  to  Zacharias  in  the  sanctuary  of  the 
temple,  was  invisible  to  the  surrounding  multitudes  without, 
both  at  the  time  of  his  entrance  into,  and  his  exit  from 
the  “  holy  place.”* 

*  To  what  is  stated  in  this  paragraph  respecting  angels,  it  will 
doubtless  be  objected,  “that  these  intelligences  are  pure  spirits, ,  and 
assume  corporeal  forms  only  on  particular  occasions.”  This  is  an 
opinion  almost  universally  prevalent;  but  it  is  a  mere  assumption, 
destitute  of  any  rational  or  Scriptural  argument  to  substantiate  its 
truth.  There  is  no  passage  in  Scripture,  with  which  I  am  acquainted 
that  makes  such  an  assertion.  The  passage  in  Psalm  civ.  4.  “  Who 
maketh  his  angels  spirits,  and  his  ministers  a  flaming  fire,”  has  been 
frequently  quoted  for  this  purpose;  but  it  has  no  reference  to  any 
opinion  that  may  be  formed  on  this  point ;  as  the  passage  should  be 
rendered,  “Who  maketh  the  winds  his  messengers,  and  a  flaming 
fire  his  ministers.”  Even  although  the  passage  were  taken  as  it  stands 
in  our  translation,  and  considered  as  referring  to  the  angels,,  it  would 
not  prove,  that  they  are  pure  immaterial  substances;  for,  while  they 
are  designated  spirits,  which  is  equally  applicable  to  men  as  well  as 
to  angels — they  are  also  said  to  be  “  a  flaming  fire,”  which  is  a  mate¬ 
rial  substance.  This  passagf  seems  to  have  no  particular  reference 
to  either  opinion ;  but,  if  considered  as  expressing  the  attributes  of 
angels,  its  meaning  plainly  is, — that  they  are  endowed  with  wonder¬ 
ful  activity — that  they  mov  with  the  swiftness  of  the  winds,  and 
operate  with  the  force  and  energy  of  flaming  fire ; — or,  in  other 
words,  that  He,  in  whose  service  they  are,  and  who  directs  their 
movements,  employs  them  “with  the  strength  of  winds,  and  the  rapidi¬ 
ty  of  lightnings.” 

In  every  instance  in  which  angels  have  been  sent  on  embassies  to 
mankind,  they  have  displayed  sensible  qualities.  They  exhibited  a 
definite  form,  somewhat  analagous  to  that  of  man,  and  colour  and 
splendour,  which  were  perceptible  by  the  organs  of  vision — they 
emitted  sounds  which  struck  the  organ  of  hearing — they  produced  the 
harmonies  of  music,  and  sung  sublime  sentiments  which  were  uttered 
in  articulate  words,  that  were  distinctly  heard  and  recognised  by  the 
persons  to  whom  they  were  sent,  Luke  ii.  14 — and  they  exerted  their 
power  over  the  sense  of  feeling ;  for  the  angel  who  appeared  to  Peter 
in  the  prison,  smote  him  on  the  side,  and  raised  him  up.”  In  these 
instances  angels  manifested  themselves  to  men,  through  the  medium 
of  three  principal  senses,  by  which  we  recognise  the  properties  of 
material  objects;  and  why,  then,  should  we  consider  them  as  purely 
immaterial  substances,  having  no  connexion  with  the  visible  universe? 
We  have  no  knowledge  of  angels  but  from  revelation;  and  all  the 
descriptions  it  gives  of  these  beings  lead  us  to  conclude,  that  they 
are  connected  with  the  world  of  matter  as  well  as  with  the  world  of 
mind,  and  are  furnished  with  organical  vehicles,  composed  of  some 
refined  material  substance  suitable  to  their  nature  and  employments. 

When  Christ  shall  appear  the  second  time,  we  are  told  that  he  is  to 
come,  not  only  in  the  glory  of  his  Father,  but  also  in  “the  glory  of 


202 


the  philosophy  op  a  future  state. 


In  particular  there  is  every  reason  to  conclude,  that 
tnere  is  a  wonderful  variety  in  the  number  and  acuteness  of 
their  organs  of  sensation.  We  find  a  considerable  variety, 
in  itse  tespccts,  among  the  sensitive  beings  which  inhabit 
our  globe.  Some  animals  appear  to  have  only  one  sense, 
as  the  muscle,  and  the  zoophytes;  many  have  but  two  senses; 

r?Hle£  ave  ™\ree;  antI  man’  tIle  most  perfect  animal,  has 
only  Jive.  These  senses,  too,  in  different  species,  differ 
very  considerably,  in  point  of  vigour  and  acuteness.  The 
'  °°  ,  a  .  ,  ner  scent,  the  stag  a  quicker  perception  of 
sounds,  and  the  eagle  and  the  lynx  more  acute  visual  organs 
than  mankind.  Tne  same  diversity  is  observable  in  the 
lorm  and  the  number  of  sensitive  organs.  In  man,  the  ear 
is  short  and  erect,  and  scarcely  susceptible  of  motion;  in  the 
lorse  and  the  ass,  it  is  long  and  flexible;  and  in  the  mole,  it 
consists  simply  of  a  hole  which  perforates  the  skull.  In 
man  there  are  two  eyes  ;  in  the  scorpion  and  spider,  eight, 
and  in  a  fly  more  than  Jive  thousand. 

That  superior  beings,  connected  with  other  worlds,  have 
additional  senses  to  those  which  we  possess,  is  highly 
probable,  especially  when  we  consider  the  general  analogy 
of  nature,  and  the  gradations  which  exist  amoncr  organized 
beings  in  our  world.  It  forms  no  reason  why° we  should 
deny  that  such  senses  exist,  because  we  can  form  no  distinct 

his  holy  angels,”  who  will  minister  to  him  and  Increase  the  splendour  of 

is  appearance.  Now,  the  glory  which  the  angels  will  display  mus 

temXted  bv 3t^nsCqile,n%’ .^atf rial !  otherwise  it  could  not  be  con¬ 
templated  by  the  assembled  inhabitants  of  our  world,  and  could  pre- 
sent  no,  gdory  or  lustre  to  their  view.  An  assemblage  of  pufelv 
spiritual  beings,  however  numerous  and  however  exalted  in  point  of 

!‘tCi  .'gfnC?’  wolll<  be  a  mere  inanity,  in  a  scene  intended  to  exhibit  a 
visible  disp^y  of  the  Divine  supremacy  and  grandeur.— The  vehicles 
,or  bodle*  of  angcls  are  doubtless  of  a  much  finer  mould  than  the 

sucheor°/menr  but’alth°ugh  they  were  at  all  times  invisible  through 
such  organs  of  vision  as  we  possess,  it  would  form  no  proof  that  thev 
weie  destitute  of  such  corporeal  frames.  The  oir  wrn  breathe  is  a 
materiaZ  substance,  yet  it  is  invisible;  and  there  are  substances  whose 
ra.j.y  is  more  than  ten  times  greater  than  that  of  the  air  of  our  at 
rnosphere.  Hydrogen  gas  is  more  than  twelve  times  lighter  than 
common  atmospheric  air.  If,  therefore,  an  organized  body  were 
formed  of  a  material  substance  similar  to  air,  or  to  hydrogenous  it 
would  ln  general  be  invisible;  but,  in  certain  circumstances  Eh 
reflect  the  l  ays  of  light,  and  become  visible,  as  certain  of  the ’lighter 
gaseous  bodies  are  found  to  do.  This  is,  in  some  measure  exemTfied 

ed  eO  andveOaT  T’  T  b°.di“  are  imPerceptible  to  the  nak- 
wiilOll  ’  aJercgularly  organized  material  substances,  endowed 
H  uh  a11  t,ic  functl0ns  requisite  to  life,  motion,  and  enjoyment 


SENSES  OP  SUPERIOR  BEINGS. 


203 


conceptions  of  any  senses  besides  those  which  we  possess. 
If  we  had  been  deprived  of  the  senses  of  sight  and  hear¬ 
ing,  and  left  to  derive  all  our  information  merely  through 
the  medium  of  feeling,  tasting,  and  smelling,  we  could  have 
had  no  more  conception  of  articulate  language,  of  musical  har¬ 
mony  and  melody,  of  the  beauties  of  the  earth,  and  of  the 
glories  of  the  sky,  than  a  muscle,  a  vegetable  or  a  stone. 
To  limit  the  number  of  senses  which  intelligent  organized 
beings  may  possess,  to  the  five  which  have  been  bestowed 
upon  man,  would  be  to  set  bounds  to  the  infinite  wisdom  and 
skill  of  the  Creator,  who,  in  all  his  works,  has  displayed 
an  endless  variety  in  the  manner  of  accomplishing  his  de¬ 
signs.  While,  in  the  terrestrial  sphere  in  which  we  move, 
our  views  are  limited  to  the  external  aspects  of  plants  and  ani¬ 
mals — organized  beings,  in  other  spheres,  may  have  the 
faculty  of  penetrating  into  their  internal,  (and  to  us,  invisi¬ 
ble)  movements— of  tracing  an  animal  from  its  embryo-state, 
through  all  its  gradations  and  evolutions,  till  it  arrive  at 
maturity — of  perceiving,  at  a  glance,  and,  as  it  were, 
through  a  transparent  medium,  the  interior  structure  of  an 
animal,  the  complicated  movements  of  its  curious  machine¬ 
ry,  the  minute  and  diversified  ramifications  of  its  vessels, 
and  the  mode  in  which  its  several  functions  are  performed — 
of  discerning  the  fine  and  delicate  machinery  which  enters 
into  the  construction,  and  produces  the  various  motions  of 
a  microscopic  animalculum,  and  the  curious  vessels,  and  the 
circulation  of  juices  which  exist  in  the  body  of  a  plant — of 
tracing  the  secret  processes  which  are  going  on  in  the 
mineral  kingdom,  and  the  operation  of  chemical  affinities 
among  the  minute  particles  of  matter,  which  produce  the 
diversified  phenomena  of  the  universe.  And  in  fine,  those 
senses  which  the  inhabitants  of  other  worlds  enjoy  in  com¬ 
mon  with  us,  may  be  possessed  by  them  in  a  state  of  greater 
acuteness  and  perfection.  While  our  visual  organs  can 
perceive  objects  distinctly,  only  within  the  limits  of  a  few 
yards  or  miles  around  us,  their  organs  may  be  so  modified 
and  adjusted,  as  to  enable  them  to  perceive  objects  with 
the  same  distinctness,  at  the  distance  of  a  hundred  miles — 
or  even  to  descry  the  scenery  of  distant  worlds.  If  our 
powers  of  vision  had  been  confined  within  the  range  to 
which  a  worm  or  a  mite  is  circumscribed,  we  could  have 
formed  no  conception  of  the  amplitude  of  our  present  range 
of  view ;  and  it  is  by  no  means  improbable,  that  organized 
beings  exist,  whose  extent  of  vision  as  far  exceeds  ours,  as 


204 


the  philosophy  op  a  future  state. 


L  a,  p  teds  that  of  the  smallest  insect,  and  that  they  may 
be  abJe  to  perceive  the  diversified  landscapes  which  exist  ii 
other  worlds,  and  the  movements  of  their  inhabitants  as 

ariver  LaofThPerCeiVe  the  °bjeCtS  0n  the  °W™te  side’  of 
a  IV  ’  tbe  narrow  arni  of  the  sea. 

After  Stephen  had  delivered  his  defence  before  the  San- 

’  W,t  are,told  “he  ><»>*«««  »P  steadfastly  Lto  heaven 
and  saw  the  glory  of  God,  and  Jesus  standing  at  the 
right  hand  of  God,  and  said,  Behold  I  see  the  1,1. 

iz  „TGeoV>nd  r  s°,n  *  ““ 

Stenhen  Z  ',1  •  “e  have  sl,PPos«>  that  the  eyes  of 
,01  lhls  occasion,  were  so  modified  or  strength, 
ened,  that  he  was  enabled  to  penetrate  into  that Tar- 
tcular  region  where  the  glorified  body  of  Christ  more 

oTnltZllZuZZ  V  'Vh?her  lhis  belenabll 

u-  ! .  11  ls>  that  angels  are  endowed  with  senses  or 

faculties  which  enable  them  to  take  a  minute  survey  of  the 
solar  system,  and  of  the  greater  part  of  our  olobe  even 
toy  Sou™ 5‘^sl“."0.el'r0."'  0,'r  terrestrial  sphere;  otherwise, 
earth  Z  it  Z  d‘slm«msh  the  particular  position  of  our 

froin  z “  trz 

anyspedallmSsyl'7’  0rT,1IaSe'  whllher  lllcy  are  sent  on 
.  *yha?  has  been  now  said  in  reference  to  the  organs  nf 

tTseveral  of  the7  ^p]icahle  to  th,e  orS™3  of  hearing,  and 

such  as  tiose  T  p  erSen’GS;  “d  ?1Ce  faculties  op  senses, 
suen  as  those  I  have  now  supposed,  would  tend  to  unveil 

more  extensively  the  wonderful  operations  of  the  Almighty, 
and  to  excite  incessant  admiration  of  his  wisdom  and  be¬ 
neficence,  it  is  reasonable  to  believe  that  he  has  bestowed 
them  on  various  orders  of  his  creatures  for  this  purpose— 
and  that  man  may  be  endowed  with  similar  sensesP  when  be 

olTxTstencel^  perfceU“-  “*  **  ^  5pb« 

(v  • 

Besides  the  topics  to  which  I  have  now  adverted  namelv 
the  gradat.on  of  intellect,  and  the  diversity  of ^  corporeal 
organization  a  stdl  more  ample  and  interesting-  field 
contemplation  will  be  opened  in  the  historv  of  the  Tinnier 

the  K”aHd  and TeTlff  fr0ug,gut  the  »»»,- including 
which  hate tel,™  g.  n  6  awM  an<1  events 

Sconce  P  “  ,he  5ereral  reSions  of  intellectual 


MORAL  HISTORY  OF  OTHER  WORLDS.  205 

The  particulars  under  this  head  which  may  be  supposed 
to  gratify  the  enlightened  curiosity  of  holy  intelligences, 
are  such  as  the  following: — the  different  periods  in  duration 
at  which  the  various  habitable  globes  emerged  from  nothing 
into  existence — the  changes  and  previous  arrangements 
through  which  they  passed  before  they  were  replenished 
}  with  inhabitants — the  distinguishing  characteristic  features 
of  every  species  of  intellectual  beings — their  modes  of  ex¬ 
istence,  of  improvement,  and  of  social  intercourse — the' 
solemn  forms  of  worship  and  adoration  that  prevail  among 
them —  the  laws  of  social ,  and  of  moral  order  peculiar  to 
each  province  of  the  Divine  Empire* — the  progress  they 
have  made  in  knowledge,  and  the  discoveries  they  have  brought 
to  light,  respecting  the  works  and  the  ways  of  God— the 
peculiar  majiifestatiojis  of  himself  which  the  Divine  Being 
may  have  made  to  them,  “at  sundry  times  and  in  divers 
manners” — the  most  remarkable  civil  and  moral  events 
which  have  happened  since  the  period  of  their  creation — 
the.  visible  emblems  of  the  Divine  Presence  and  glory 
which  are  displayed  before  them— the  information  they 
have  obtained  respecting  the  transactions  and  the  moral 
government  of  other  worlds — the  various  stages  of  im¬ 
provement  through  which  they  are  appointed  to  pass — the 
different  regions  of  the  universe  to  which  they  may  be 

*  There  are  certain  general  laws  which  are  common  to  all  the  or¬ 
ders  of  intellectual  beings  throughout  the  universe.  The  two  prin¬ 
ciples  which  form  the  basis  of  our  moral  law  are  of  this  nature  : _ 

“  Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thine  heart,  and  with  all 
thine  understanding,”  and  “thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbour  as  thyself.” 
For  we  cannot  suppose  the  Deity,  in  consistency  with  the  sanctity  and 
rectitude  of  his  nature,  to  reverse  these  laws ,  in  relation  to  any  class  of 
intelligences,  or  to  exempt  them  from  an  obligation  to  obey  them  ;  and, 
therefore,  they  may  be  considered  as  the  two  grand  moral  principles 
which  direct  the  affections  and  conduct  of  all  holy  beings  throughout 
the  immensity  of  God’s  empire,  and  which  unite  them  to  one  another, 
and  to  their  common  Creator.  But,  in  subordination  to  these  princi¬ 
ples  or  laws,  there  may  be  a  variety  of  special  moral  laws,  adapted 
to  the_  peculiar  economy,  circumstances,  and  relations,  which  exist  in 
in  eac.i  distinct  world.  As  we  have  certain  special  laws  in  our  moral 
code,  such  as  the  fifth  and  seventh  precepts  of  the  Decalogue,  which, 
in  all  probability,  do  not  apply  to  the  inhabitants  of  some  other  worlds, 
so  they  may  have  various  specific  regulations  or  laws,  which  cannot 
apply  to  us  in  our  present  state.  The  reader  will  find  a  particular 
illustration  of  the  two  fundamental  laws  to  which  I  have  now  advert¬ 
ed,  and  of  their  application  to  the  inhabitants  of  all  worlds,  in  a  work 
which  I  lately  published,  entitled,  “  The  Philosophy  of  Religion:  or, 
an  Illustration  of  the  Moral  Laws  of  the  Universe  ” 

IS 


206 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


transported,  and  the  final  destination  to  which  they  are 
appointed. 

In  particular,  the  facts  connected  with  their  moral  histo¬ 
ry ,  in  so  far  as  they  may  be  unfolded,  will  form  an  interest¬ 
ing  subject  of  discourse  and  of  contemplation.  It  is  highly 
probable,  when  we  consider  the  general  benignity  of  the 
Divine  Nature,  and  the  numerous  evidences  of  it  which  ap¬ 
pear  throughout  the  whole  kingdom  of  animated  nature — 
that  the  inhabitants  of  the  greatest  portion  of  the  univer¬ 
sal  system,  have  retained  the  moral  rectitude  in  which  they 
were  created,  and  are,  consequently,  in  a  state  of  perfect 
happiness.  But,  since  we  know,  from  painful  experience, 
that  one  world  has  swerved  from  its  allegiance  to  the  Crea¬ 
tor,  and  been  plunged  into  the  depths  of  physical  and  moral 
evil,  it  is  not  at  all  improbable,  that  the  inhabitants  of  seve¬ 
ral  other  worlds  have  been  permitted  to  fall  into  a  similar 
calamity, — for  this  purpose  among  others — that  the  impor¬ 
tance  of  moral  order  might  be  demonstrated,  that  the  awful 
consequences  of  a  violation  of  the  eternal  laws  of  heaven 
might  be  clearly  manifested,  and  that  a  field  might  be  laid 
open  for  the  display  of  the  rectitude  and  mercy  of  God  as 
the  moral  Governor  of  the  universe.  In  reference  to  such 
cases  (if  any  exist)  the  points  of  inquiry  would  naturally 
be — What  is  the  ultimate  destination  of  those  beings  who, 
in  other  regions  of  creation,  have  acted  the  part  of  rebel¬ 
lious  man?  Has  their  Creator  interposed  for  their  delive¬ 
rance  in  a  manner  analogous  to  that  in  which  he  has  ac¬ 
complished  the  redemption  of  mankind?  If  so,  wherein 
do  such  schemes  of  mercy  differ,  and  wherein  do  they 
agree  with  the  plan  of  salvation  by  Jesus  Christ?  What 
scenes  of  moral  evil  have  been  displayed,  and  how  have 
the  moral  disorders  in  those  worlds  been  over-ruled  and 
counteracted  by  the  providential  dispensations  of  the  Al¬ 
mighty?  Here,  a  thousands  questions  would  crowd  upon 
the  mind,  a  variety  of  emotions  of  opposite  kinds  would  be 
excited,  and  a  most  interesting  field  of  investigation  would 
be  laid  open  to  the  contemplation  of  the  redeemed  inhabi¬ 
tants  of  such  a  world  as  ours.  And,  it  is  easy  to  conceive, 
with  what  kindred  emotions  and  sympathetic  feelings,  and 
with  what  transporting  gratulations,  the  renovated  inhabi¬ 
tants  of  such  worlds,  would  recognise  each  other,  should 
they  ever  be  brought  into  contact,  and  permitted  to  mingle 
their  ascriptions  of  praise  to  the  Creator  and  Redeemer  of 
worlds. 


MORAL  niSTORY  OF  OTHER  WORLDS. 


207 


Even  in  those  worlds  where  the  inhabitants  have  retained 
their  primeval  innocence,  there  may  be  an  almost  infinite 
variety  in  the  Divine  dispensations,  both  in  a  moral  and 
intellectual  point  of  view. — As  finite  intelligences,  from 
their  very  nature,  are  progressive  beings,  and,  therefore, 
cannot  be  supposed  to  acquire  all  the  treasures  of  wisdom 
and  knowledge,  and  to  comprehend  all  the  multifarious  dis¬ 
plays  of  Divine  perfection,  during  the  first  stages  of  their 
existence — there  may  be  an  admirable  diversity  of  modes, 
corresponding  to  their  peculiar  circumstances  and  stages  of 
improvement,  by  which  the  Creator  may  gradually  unfold 
to  them  the  glory  of  his  nature,  and  enable  them  to  take  a 
more  extensive  survey  of  the  magnitude  and  order  of  his 
dominions.  Some  may  be  only  emerging  from  the  first 
principles  of  science,  like  Adam  soon  alter  his  creation, 
and  may  have  arrived  but  a  few  degrees  beyond  the  sphere 
of  knowledge  which  bounds  the  view  of  man;  others  may 
have  arrived  at  a  point  where  they  can  take  a  more  expan¬ 
sive  survey  of  the  order,  economy,  and  relations,  of  mate¬ 
rial  and  intellectual  existences, — while  others,  after  having 
contemplated,  for  ages,  a  wide  extent  of  creation,  in  one 
district  of  the  empire  o.f  God,  may  be  transported  to  a  new 
and  a  distant  province  of  the  universe,  to  contemplate  the 
perfections  of  Deity  in  another  point  of  view,  and  to  in¬ 
vestigate  and  admire  a  new  scene  of  wonders. — If  every 
individual  of  the  human  race,  from  his  birth  to  his  death, 
passes  through  a  train  of  providences  peculiar  to  himself, 
it  appears  at  least  highly  probable,  reasoning  from  the  ana¬ 
logies  to  which  we  have  already  adverted,  and  from  the 
variety  that  every  where  appears  in  the  natural  and  moral 
world,  that  the  Divine  dispensations  toward  every  distinct 
class  of  intelligent  beings,  have  some  striking  peculiarities, 
which  do  not  exactly  coincide  with  those  of  any  other. 

That  some  portion,  at  least,  of  the  natural  and  moral  his¬ 
tory  of  other  worlds  will  be  laid  open  to  the  inspection  of 
redeemed  men  in  the  future  world,  may  be  argued  from 
this  consideration, — that  such  views  will  tend  to  unfold  the 
moral  character  of  the  Deity ,  and  to  display  more  fully  his 
intelligence,  wisdom,  and  rectitude,  in  the  diversified  modes 
of  his  administration,  as  the  Governor  of  the  universe.  We 
have  reason  to  believe  that  the  material  creation  exists 
solely  for  the  sake  of  sentient  and  intelligent  beings  ;  and 
that  it  has  been  arranged  into  distinct  departments,  and 
peopled  with  various  ranks  of  intellectual  natures,  chiefly 


^8  THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 

for  the  purpose  of  giving  a  display  of  the  moral  attributes 
of  God,  and  of  demonstrating  the  indispensable  necessity 
and  the  eternal  obligation  of  the  moral  laws  he  has  enacted, 
in  order  to  secure  the  happiness  of  the  whole  intelligent  sys¬ 
tem.  And,  if  so,  we  may  reasonably  conclude,  that  a  cer¬ 
tain  poition  ot  the  Divine  dispensations  towards  other  classes 
of  the  intelligent  creation  will  ultimately  be  displayed  to  our 
view.  1  his  position  may  likewise  be  argued  from  the  fact, 
that  other  intelligences  have  been  made  acquainted  with  the' 
affairs  of  our  world,  and  the  tenor  of  the  dispensations  of 
God  towards  our  race.  The  angelic  tribes  have  been  fre¬ 
quently  sent  on  embassages  to  our  terrestrial  sphere.  On 
such  occasions  they  have  indicated  an  intimate  acquaintance 
with  the  most  interesting  transactions  which  have  taken  place 
among  us;  and  we  are  informed,  that  they  still  “desire  to 
pry  into”  the  scheme  of  redemption,  and  ’“to  learn”  from 
the  Divine  dispensations  toward  the  church  “  the  manifold 
wisdom  of  God.”*  Some  notices  of  the  history,  the  em¬ 
ployments,  and  the  destination,  of  these  celestial  beings  have 
likewise  been  conveyed  to  us.  We  know  that  they  hold  an 
elevated  station  in  the  kingdom  of  Providence  ;  that  they 
are  possessed  of  great  power  and  .wisdom,  of  wonderful  ac¬ 
tivity,  of  superior  intellectual  faculties,  and  of  consummate 
holiness  and  rectitude  of  nature  ;  that  they  are  employed  on 
C6i  tain  occasions  as  ambassadors  from  God  to  man,  in  cxc- 
cuting  his  judgments  upon  the  wicked,  and  ministering  to  the 
heirs  of  salvation  ;  and  that  a  certain  number  of  them  fell 
from  the  high  station  in  which  they  were  originally  placed, 
and  plunged  themselves  into  a  state  of  sin  and  perdition.’ 
We  have  therefore  reason  to  believe,  that  it  is  one  part  of 
the  plan  of  the  government  of  God,  to  disclose  the  history 
of  one  species  of  intellectual  beings  to  another,  in  such  por¬ 
tions,  and  at  such  seasons,  as  may  seem  most  proper  to  Infi¬ 
nite  Wisdom,  and  best  suited  to  the  state  and  character,  and 
the  gradual  improvement  ot  his  intelligent  offspring. 

In  conformity  to  what  has  been  now  advanced,  we  find 
the  saints  in  heaven  represented  as  uttering  a  song  of  praise 
to  God,  in  consequence  of  the  survey  they  had  taken  of  his 
moral  administration,  and  of  the  admiration  it  excited.  “  They 
sing  the  song  of  Moses,  and  the  song  of  the  Lamb,  saying, 
Jiist  and  true  are  thy  ways,  thou  King  of  Saints .”  And,  in 
proportion  as  the  dispensations  of  Providence  towards  other 


*  See  Ephes.  iii.  10.  1  Peter  i.  12. 


MORAL  HISTORY  OF  OTHER  WORLDS. 


209 


worlds  are  unfolded,  in  the  same  proportion  will  their  views 
of  Jehovah’s  “eternal  righteousness”  be  expanded,  and  a 
new  note  ot  admiration  and  rapture  added  to  their  song  of 
praise. — The  knowledge  of  the  saints  in  heaven  is  repre¬ 
sented  as  being  very  accurate  and  comprehensive.  Hence 
it  is  declared,  that,  in  that  state  of  perfection,  “  they  shall 
know,  even  as  also  they  are  known.”  This  expression  cer¬ 
tainly  denotes  a  very  high  degree  of  knowledge  respecting 
the  works  and  the  ways  of  God  ;  and,  therefore,  most  com¬ 
mentators  explain  it  as  consisting  in  such  an  intuitive  and 
comprehensive  knowledge  “  as  shall  bear  some  fair  resem¬ 
blance  to  that  of  the  Divine  Being,  which  penetrates  to  the 
very  centre  of  every  object,  and  sees  through  the  soul,  and 
all  things,  as  at  one  single  glance  or,  at  least,  that  “their 
knowledge  of  heavenly  objects  shall  be  as  certain,  imme¬ 
diate,  and  familiar,  as  any  of  their  immediate  friends  and 
acquaintances  now  have  of  them.”*  And,  if  such  interpre¬ 
tations  be  admitted,  this  knowledge  must  include  a  minute 
and  comprehensive  view  of  the  dispensations  of  the  Creator 
towards  other  worlds,  and  other  orders  of  moral  and  intelli¬ 
gent  agents. 


In  regard  to  the  manner  in  which  information  respecting 
the  structure,  the  inhabitants,  and  the  history  of  the  other 
worlds  may  be  communicated,  our  limited  knowledge  affords 
no  certain  data  on  which  to  ground  a  definite  opinion.  We 
may,  however,  reasonably  suppose,  that  an  intercourse  and 
correspondence  will  be  occasionally  opened  up,  by  means  of 
celestial  beings  endowed  with  faculties  of  rapid  motion,  who 
may  communicate  particular  details  of  the  intelligence  they 
acquire  in  the  regions  they  are  accustomed  to  visit.  Such 
correspondence  has  already  partially  taken  place  in  our 
world,  by  means  of  those  beings,  termed  in  Scripture,  “  the 
angels,”  or  “the  messengers  of  Jehovah;”  and,  it  is  highly 
probable,  had  man  continued  in  his  state  of  original  integrity, 
that  such  angelic  embassies  would  have  been  much  more  fre¬ 
quent  than  they  have  ever  been,  and  we  might  have  been 
made  acquainted,  in  this  way,  with  some  outlines  of  the  phy¬ 
sical  and  moral  scenery  of  other  worlds,  particularly  of  those 
which  belong  to  our  system — of  which  we  must  now  be  con- 

*  See  Doddridge’s  and  Guyse’s  paraphrase  on  1  Cor.  xiii.  12, 

18* 


210 


THE  PIIILOSOPII V  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE 


tented  to  remain  in  ignorance  ;  and  must  have  recourse  to 
the  aids  of  reason,  and  science,  and  observation,  in  order  to 
trace  some  very  general  outlines  of  their  physical  economy. 
This  is,  doubtless,  one  deplorable  effect,  among  others,  of 
the  apostacy  of  man — that  intelligences  endowed  with  moral 
perfection  can  no  longer  hold  familiar  intercourse  with  the 
race  of  Adam,  but  in  so  far  as  they  are  employed  by  their 
Creator  in  communicating  occasional  messages,  which  have 
a  respect  merely  to  their  moral  renovation.* — We  may,  like- 
wise,  with  some  degree  of  probability,  suppose,  that  every 
distinct  order  of  holy  intelligences,  after  having  resided  for 
a  certain  number  of  ages,  in  one  region  of  the  universe, 
may  be  conveyed  to  another  province  of  creation,  to  inves¬ 
tigate  the  new  scenes  of  wisdom  and  omnipotence  there  un¬ 
folded, — and  so  on,  in  a  continued  series  of  transportations, 
throughout  the  ages  of  eternity.  We  know  that  man  is  des¬ 
tined  to  undergo  such  a  change  of  locality;  and  although 
sin  has  made  the  passage  from  one  world  to  another  assume 
a  gloomy  and  alarming  aspect,  it  may  nevertheless  be  an. 
example,  (though  in  a  different  manner)  of  those  removals 
which  take  place  with  respect  to  other  beings,  from  one  pro¬ 
vince  of  creation  to  another.  Nor  have  we  any  reason  to 
believe,  that  the  locality  in  which  we  shall  be  placed,  after 
the  general  resurrection,  will  form  our  permanent  and  ever¬ 
lasting  abode  ;  otherwise  we  should  be  eternally  chained 
down,  as  we  are  at  present,  to  a  small  corner  of  creation. 

In  regard  to  the  redeemed  inhabitants  of  our  world,  there 
is  every  reason  to  believe,  that  the  Redeemer  himself,  he  “in 
whom  dwell  all  the  treasures  of  wisdom  and  knowledge,” 
will  be  one  grand  medium  through  which  information  will  be 
communicated  respecting  the  distant  glories  of  Jehovah’s 
empire.  This  seems  to  be  directly  intimated,  though  in  me¬ 
taphorical  language,  in  the  following  passage  from  the  book 
of  Revelation  :  “  The  Lamb  who  is  in  the  midst  of  the  throne 
shall  feed  them,  and  shall  lead  them  to  fountains  of  living 
water.”  Knowledge  is  the  food  of  the  mind ;  and  in  this 
sense  the  term  is  frequently  applied  in  the  Scriptures  : — “  I 
will  give  them  pastors  (saith  God)  after  mine  own  heart,  who 
shall  feed  them  with  knowledge  and  understanding .”  “  Feed 

*  It  is  probable  that  the  celestial  beings  who  have  occasionally  held  a 
communication  with  our  race,  are  not  all  of  the  same  species,  or  inhabit 
the  same  regions  ;  since  they  are  distinguished  in  Scripture  by  different 
names,  as  Seraphim,  Cherubim,  Thrones,  Dominions,  Anaels,  Arch¬ 
angels,  Sic.  ° 


MORAL  HISTORY  OF  OTHER  WORLDS. 


211 


the  church  of  God,”  says  the  apostle  Peter ;  that  is,  instruct 
them  in  the  knowledge  of  the  truths  of  religion.  Therefore, 
by  imparting  to  his  saints  a  knowledge  of  the  plans  and  ope- 
rations  of  God,  and  information  respecting  the  magnificence 
of  his  works  in  the  regions  around,  “the  Lamb  in  the  midst 
of  the  throne  will  feed  them,”  by  gratifying  their  intellectual 
powers,  and  their  desires  after  knowledge  ;  and  the  noble 
and  transporting  trains  of  thought  which  such  discoveries 
will  inspire,  (and  which  may  be  aptly  compared  to  the  effect 
produced  by  “  fountains  of  living  water”  on  the  parched  tra¬ 
veller,)  will  arrest  all  the  faculties  of  their  souls,  and  fill  them 
“  with  joy  unspeakable  and  full  of  glory.” 

Perhaps,  it  may  not  be  beyond  the  bounds  of  probability 
to  suppose,  that,  at  certain  seasons,  during  a  grand  convoca¬ 
tion  of  the  redeemed,  with  Jesus  their  exalted  Head  president 
among  them — that  glorious  personage  may  impart  to  them 
knowledge  of  the  most  exalted  kind,  direct  their  views  to 
some  bright  manifestations  of  Deity,  and  deliver  most  inter¬ 
esting  lectures  on  the  works  and  the  ways  of  God.  This 
would  be  quite  accordant  with  his  office  as  the  “Mediator  be¬ 
tween  God  and  man,”  and  to  his  character  as  the  “Messenger 
of  Jehovah,”  and  the  “Revealer”  of  the  Divine  dispensations. 

Pointing  to  some  distant  world,  (which,  even  to  the  acute 
visual  organs  of  heavenly  beings,  may  appear  only  as  a  small 
lucid  speck  in  their  sky,)  we  may  suppose  him  giving  such  a 
descant  as  the  following  : — “  That  world  presents  a  very  dif¬ 
ferent  aspect  from  what  yours  once  did,  owing  chiefly  to  the 
moral  purity  and  perfection  of  its  inhabitants.  There,  the 
most  grand  and  variegated  objects  adorn  their  celestial  ca¬ 
nopy  ;  and  the  scenes  around  their  habitations  are  intermin¬ 
gled  with  every  thing  that  is  beautiful  to  the  eye,  and  grati¬ 
fying  to  the  senses  and  the  imagination.  Neither  scorching 
heats,  nor  piercing  colds,  nor  raging  storms,  ever  disturb  the 
tranquillity  of  those  happy  mansions.  The  fine  ethereal  fluid 
which  they  breathe  produces  a  perpetual  flow  of  pleasing 
emotions,  and  sharpens  and  invigorates  their  intellectual 
powers  for  every  investigation.  The  peculiar  refractive  and 
reflective  powers  possessed  by  the  atmospheric  fluid  which 
surrounds  them,  produce  a  variety  of  grand  and  beautiful  ef¬ 
fects,  sometimes  exhibiting  aerial  landscapes,  and  scenes  a 
emblematical  of  moral  harmony  and  perfection,— sometimes 
a  magnificent  display  of  the  richest  and  most  variegated  co¬ 
louring,  and  sometimes  reflecting  the  images  of  the  celestial 
orbs  in  various  aspects  and  degrees  ot  magnitude.  I  heir 


212 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


vegetable  kingdom  is  enriched  with  a  variety  of  productions 
unknown  in  your  former  world,  diversified  with  thousands  of 
different  forms,  shades,  colours,  and  perfumes,  which  shed  a 
delicious  fragrance  all  around.  The  inferior  sentient  beings 
are  likewise  different,  and  exhibit  such  ingenious,  mild,  and 
affectionate  disposilions,  as  contribute,  in  no  inconsiderable 
degree,  to  the  pleasure  and  entertainment  of  the  more  intel- 
igent  order  of  the  inhabitants.  The  organs  of  vision  of  these 
intelligences  are  so  acute,  that  they  are  enabled  to  perceive 
as  through  a  transparent  medium,  the  various  chymical  and 
mechanical  processes  that  are  incessantly  going  on  in  the 
numberless  ramifications  of  the  vegetable  tribes,  and  in  the 
more  curious  and  complicated  structure  of  animal  bodies  • 
for  the  Creator  has  ordained,  as  one  part  of  their  mental  en 
joymenfs,  that  they  shall  be  furnished  with  the  means  o' 
tracing  the  mode  of  his  operations,  and  the  designs  they 

are  intended  to  accomplish  in  the  different  departments  o' 
nature.  r 

“1  hey  are  likewise  extensively  acquainted  with  moral 
science— with  the  moral  relations  of  intelligent  beings  to 
heir  Creator  and  to  one  another,  and  with  the  outlines  of 
the  history  of  several  other  worlds  ;  for  the  leading  facts  in 
the  history  of  your  world,  respecting  the  fall  of  man,  its  dis. 
mal  consequences,  and  your  subsequent  redemption  and  re- 
novation,  have  been  communicated  to  them,  for  the  purpose 
of  enlarging  their  views  of  God’s  moral  dispensations,  and 
illustrating  the  rectitude  and  benevolence  of  his  government. 

In  their  intercourses  and  associations,  no  discordant  voice  is 
ever  heard,  no  symptom  of  disaffection  ever  appears  no 
boisterous  passions  ever  disturb  their  tranquillity  out  all  is 
harmony  and  order,  peace  and  love.  Their  progress  in  the 
knowledge  of  God,  and  of  his  works,  is  rapid  and  sure,  for 
they  see  clearly  the  first  principles  of  all  reasoning  and  sci¬ 
ence  ;  and,  without  once  making  a  false  step,  or  deducing  an 
erroneous  conclusion,  they  trace  them  with  rapidity  and  cer- 
tainty  to  all  their  legitimate  consequences.  Their  acquaint¬ 
ance  with  natural  and  moral  facts  is  extensive  and  minute. 
*or  the  most  sacred  regard  is  attached  to  truth,  which  was 
never  once  violated  m  that  happy  society  ;  and,  therefore 
every  discovery,  every  new  doctrine  and  fact  which  is  brought 
*  ,b{  a!7  ‘“dividual,  is  regarded  by  all  others  as  an  es¬ 
tablished  truth  which  is  never  called  in  question,  and  which 
serves  to  direct  and  facilitate  all  their  other  researches.  Un¬ 
like  the  exaggerations  and  falsehoods  which  were  once  pro. 


MORAL  HISTORY  OF  OTHER  WORLDS. 


213 


pagated  by  lying  travellers  and  skeptical  philosophers,  in 
your  former  world,  which  tended  to  bewilder  the  anxious  in- 
quirer,  and  to  obscure  the  radiance  of  truth  ;  in  yonder  world 
truth  is  regarded  as  a  most  sacred  and  invaluable  treasure, 
as  the  basis  of  the  happiness  of  the  moral  universe,  and  the 
foundation  on  which  rests  the  throne  of  the  Eternal ;  and, 
therefore,  being  never  violated  by  any  individual,  every  tes¬ 
timony  and  assertion  is  received  with  unhesitating  confidence. 
By  a  rapid  mode  of  communication  which  has  been  establish¬ 
ed,  their  intercourses  with  each  other  are  frequent  and  de¬ 
lightful,  and  the  discoveries  which  are  made  of  the  operations 
of  infinite  wisdom  and  benevolence,  are  quickly  circulated 
through  all  the  intelligent  ranks  of  that  abode  of  felicity  and 
love.  Beings  from  other  worlds  occasionally  visit  them,  and 
convey  interesting  intelligence,  and  affectionate  congratula¬ 
tions  from  the  regions  whence  they  came ;  and  a  glorious 
symbol  of  the  Divine  Majesty  was  lately  displayed  in  their 
firmament,  from  which  was  announced,  in  majestic  but  mild 
and  transporting  language — the  approbation  of  their  Creator, 
and  his  purpose  of  translating  them,  as  a  reward  of  their  obe¬ 
dience,  to  another  region  of  his  empire,  to  behold  new  dis¬ 
plays  of  his  beneficence  and  power. 

“  This  is  a  specimen  of  the  moral  order  and  happiness 
which  prevail  among  the  greater  part  of  those  worlds  which 
shine  from  afar  in  yonder  firmament,  but  which  are  distin¬ 
guished  by  a  variety  of  peculiar  circumstances,  which  shall 
be  unfolded  on  another  occasion.” 

Directing  their  view  to  another  distant  orb,  which  appears 
like  a  dim  ruddy  speck  in  an  obscure  quarter  of  the  firma¬ 
ment,  he  may  thus  proceed  : — “  That,  too,  is  a  world  on  a 
different  scale,  and  in  a  different  condition.  It  is  a  thousand 
times  larger  than  the  globe  you  once  inhabited,  and  was 
originally  arrayed  with  all  that  magnificence  and  beauty  which 
characterize  the  works  of  the  Creator.  During  a  consider¬ 
able  period  its  inhabitants  retained  their  allegiance  to  their 
Maker,  and  their  affection  for  each  other.  But  certain  indi¬ 
viduals,  whom  a  principle  of  pride  and  ambition  had  led  to 
desire  stations  of  pre-eminence,  having  dared  to  violate  some 
of  the  fundamental  laws  of  their  Creator, — the  moral  turpi 
tude  which  this  diposition  and  conduct  produced,  gradually 
spread  from  one  rank  to  another,  till  the  whole  mass  of  its 
inhabitants  was  completely  contaminated,  and  plunged  into  a 
gulf  of  misery.  To  such  a  dreadful  length  has  this  depra¬ 
vity  proceeded,  that  even  the  external  aspect  of  that  world, 


214 


THE  PHILOSOPHY"  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


which  was  once  fair  as  Eden,  has  assumed  the  appearance 
of  a  gloomy  waste,  and  a  barren  wilderness.  The  rivers 
have  been  turned  out  of  their  course,  by  these  infatuated  be- 
ings,  that  they  might  overflow  and  change  into  a  marsh' the 
once  fertile  plains.  The  earth  has  been  dug  into  immense 
pits  and  chasms,  and  the  vegetable  tribes  have  been  torn  from 
their  roots  and  stripped  ol  their  verdure,  in  order  to  deface 
the  primeval  beauty  of  creation.  By  these,  and  other  horri¬ 
ble  devastations,  the  ethereal  fluid  in  which  they  breathed, 
which  formerly  diffused  a  delightful  fragrance,  has  now  be¬ 
come  the  receptacle  of  noisome  exhalations,  which  nauseate 
and  irritate  every  species  of  sensitive  existence.  Its  brilli¬ 
ancy  has  thereby  become  obscured,  so  that  their  sun  appears 
louring  through  its  dense  vapours,  like  a  dusky  ball ;  and 
their  nocturnal  sky,  which  once  presented  a  splendid  assem- 
blage  of  shining  orbs,  is  now  covered  with  blackness,  and 
darkness,  and  tempest,  through  which  no  celestial  orb  ever 
transmits  the  least  glimmering  ray.  For  the  almighty  Con. 
tnver  of  all  worlds  has  so  arranged,  proportioned,  and  ad. 
justed  every  circumstance  in  the  constitution  of  nature,  that 
the  smallest  derangement,  by  malevolent  beings,  of  the  order 
he^has  established,  is  always  productive  of  disastrous  effects. 

Instead  of  being  animated  with  love  to  their  Creator  and 
to  one  another,  which  is  the  first  duty  of  all  intelligent  crea. 
tures,  they  hate  their  Maker,  and  curse  him  on  account  of 
the  existence  he  has  given  them ;  and  they  hate  each  other 
with  a  perfect  hatred.  There  exists  among  them  no  peace 
justice,  sympathy,  friendship,  or  confidence.  Every  one 
beholds  and  recognises  another  with  the  countenance  of  a 
nend,  and  is  ever  intent  upon  annoying  him  to  the  utmost  of 
his  power.  And,  were  it  not  that  their  bodies  are  constructed 
on  an  immortal  principle,  so  that  no  power  less  than  infinite 
can  completely  destroy  them,  their  ferocious  passions  would 
,nOW’  ^ave  effected  the  utter  extermination  of  every 
individual  in  that  populous  but  miserable  world.  Their  bodies 
which  were  once  fair  and  glorious,  are  now  covered  with 
every  mark  of  vileness  and  deformity.  They  have  no  de¬ 
light  in  contemplating  the  glories  of  their  Creator’s  work¬ 
manship  for  they  have  defaced  every  beauty  which  creation 
displayed,  when  it  came  fresh  and  fair  from  the  hand  of  its 
Maker  ;  and  the  intelligence  and  wisdom  they  formerly  pos- 
sessed,  are  now  obliterated,  and  changed  into  ignorance  and 

“  At  the  commencement  of  this  affecting  scene  of  depnw 


MORAL  HISTORY  OF  OTHER  WORLDS. 


215 


vity  a  messenger  was  despatched  by  their  Almighty  Sove- 
reign  to  warn  them  of  their  danger,  and  to  urge  them  to 
reformation  ;  but,  as  they  had  not  then  felt  the  full  effects  of 
that  wretchedness  into  which  they  were  plunging— after  a 
few  temporary  pangs  of  remorse,  ‘  they  returned  every  one 
to  his  evil  wavs.’  Holy  intelli  oC  1C0  , 

have  occasionally  been  sent,  to  contemplate  the  gloomy  as. 
pect,  and  the  sad  desolations  of  this  wretched  world  ;  in  or¬ 
der  that  they  might  bring  back  intelligence  to  the  worlds 
with  which  they  are  more  immediately  connected,  of  the  rns- 
mal  effects  produced  by  the  violation  of  those  eternal  laws  of 
rectitude  which  the  Governor  of  the  universe  has  ordained. 
The  Creator  has,  for  many  ages,  permitted  those  physical 
and  moral  disorders  to  exist— not  because  he  delights  in  the 
misery  of  any  of  his  creatures,  but  because  he  has  a  regard 
to  the  ultimate  happiness  of  the  whole  intelligent  system.  He 
leaves  them,  in  the  mean  time,  ‘  to  eat  the  fruit  ot  their  own 
ways,’  that  they  may  feel  the  full  effects  of  their  apostacy 
and  wickedness.  He  has  permitted  them  to  proceed  thus  far 
in  their  rebellion  and  depravity,  in  order  that  surrounding 
worlds  may  be  fully  apprised  of  the  dismal  effects  that  must 
inevitably  ensue  on  every  infringement  of  moral  order.  1  his 
desolated  world  and  its  wretched  inhabitants  are  doomed  to 
remain  in  their  present  deplorable  state,  for  ages  yet  to  come, 
till  an  extensive  and  indelible  impression  be  made  on  toe  in¬ 
habitants  of  every  province  of  God’s  empire,  of  their  eternal 
obligation  to  conform  to  those  laws  and  principles  ot  moral- 
order  which  his  infinite  wisdom  has  established  lor  the  regu¬ 
lation  of  the  intelligent  universe  ;  and  also,  that  those  misera¬ 
ble  beings  themselves  may  be  aroused  to  consideration,  led  to 
humble  themselves  in  his  presence,  and  made  to  feel  some 
emotions  of  contrition  for  their  impiety  and  ingratitude.  When 
these  ends  are  accomplished,  a  bright  effulgence  shall  sud¬ 
denly  illume  the  darkness  of  their  night,  their  atmosphere 
shall  be  cleared  of  its  vapours,  and  the  glorious  orbs  of _hea- 
ven  shall  once  more  burst  upon  their  view  ;  the  astonished 
inhabitants  shall  lift  up  their  eyes  with  amazement  at  the 
wondrous  and  unlooked-for  spectacle,  and  a  divine  messenger, 
arrayed  in  splendid  majesty,  shall  proclaim,  ‘  Peace  ^from 
heaven — Goodwill  from  Jehovah  to  this  guilty  world.  In 
both  hemispheres  of  this  globe,  shall  the  joyful  message  be 
proclaimed.  This  sudden  and  unexpected  announcement 
will  arrest  the  attention  of  every  inhabitant,  and  rekindle  in 
his  breast  those  sparks  of  gratitude  which  had  been  so  long 


216  the  philosophy  of  a  future  state. 

extinguish  To  prove  the  sincerity  of  this  annunciation, 
the  Power  of  the  Highest’  will  be  interposed  to  purify  the 
atmosphere,  to  restore  the  desolations  which  had  been  pro¬ 
duced,  and  to  renew  the  face  of  nature.  A  series  of  moral 
instructions  will  commence,  and  be  carried  on  with  vigour, 
till  all  be  fully  convinced  of  the  folly  and  impiety  of  their 
conduct.  Order  will  be  gradually  re-established  ;  affection, 
ate  intercourses  will  commence ;  an  indelible  impression  of 
their  ingratitude  and  wickedness,  and  of  the  justice  and  be. 
nevolence  of  God,  will  be  for  ever  fixed  in  their  minds,  which 
will  secure  them,  at  all  future  periods,  from  a  similar  apos- 

umphant^  a“d  happiness  sha11  finally  reign  tri- 

in  Jhp  oTb  t?piCS,aLth,ese’  may  we  suppose  our  Redeemer, 
in  the  character  of  Mediator,  occasionally  to  expatiate,  with 

irresistible  eloquence,  when  presiding  in  the  assemblies  of 
h  s  redeemed  ;  and  the  emotions  produced  by  such  commu. 

h  ;lW  n  °UbtleSu  eXC,tG  them  t0  J°in  in  un,son  in  cele¬ 

brating  the  Divine  character  and  administration,  in  such 

re^ffrmth^  t686  d  ?aPeIujah  !  tlie  Lord  God  omnipotent 
reigneth.  True  and  righteous  are  his  judgments.  Salvation 

and  glory,  and  honour,  and  power,  unto  the  Lord  our  God! 
Thou  art  worthy  to  receive  glory,  honour,  and  power  ;  for 

thou  hast  created  all  things,  and  for  thy  pleasure  they  are 
and  were  created.”*  :  ^  y 

j  h°Pe  n°ne  °,(  m/, readers  will  consider  the  supposition  of  the  Re 
fcewCaSralIy  de  lver.ln£  lectures  on  Divine  subjects  to  an  assem¬ 
bly  of  his  saints,  as  either  improbable,  extravagant,  or  romantic _ «;n™ 

entertained3  ab°Ve-’,  1  find’  that  tlle  pious  and  philosophic  Dr.  I  Watts 
entertained  a  similar  opinion.  In  his  sermon  “n„  tu  1  • 

given  to  the  younger  spirits  there,  by  spirits  o^TmoreSaUerstefon0? 

?f  hiTacLnr°cL"rMLav?  Je^Cbris^™elf  bc  eSriaZ^  TeSi 

entertain  the  attention  and  to  exalt  tbe  f-,1  2race’ and  are  reserved  to 

S'lrain^ off 


MORAL  HISTORY  OF  OTHER  WORLDS. 


217 


Thus  I  have  endeavoured  to  show,  that  even  that  portion  of 
.ne  universe  which  lies  within  the  reach  of  our  assisted  vision, 
comprehends  within  its  capacious  sphere,  at  least  two  thou- 
sand  four  hundred  millions  of  worlds— that  each  oi  these 
worlds,  being  constructed  by  infinite  wisdom,  must  exhibit, 
even  in  its  external  aspect,  a  scene  worthy  of  the  contem¬ 
plation  of  every  rational  being — that  it  is  highly  probable, 
from  ascertained  facts,  from  analogy,  and  from  revelation, 
that  each  of  these  worlds  has  a  peculiarity  ot  scenery,  and  o 
appendages,  which  distinguish  it  from  every  other  that 
there  is  a  gradation  of  intellect,  and  beings  of  different  oiders 
among  the  inhabitants  of  these  worlds— that  it  is  probable 
their  corporeal  forms  and  their  organs  of  sensation  are  .ike- 
wise  wonderfully  diversified— and  that  the  natural  and  moral 
history  of  each  presents  scenes  and  transactions  different 
from  those  which  are  found  in  any  other  world.  So  that 
when  the  mind  endeavours  to  grasp  the  immense  number  of 
worlds,  here  presented  to  our  mental  view,  and  considers  the 
variety  of  aspect  in  which  each  of  them  requires  to  be  con¬ 
templated— there  appears,  to  such  limited  intellects  as  ours, 
no  prospect  of  a  termination  to  the  survey  of  a  scene  so  ex¬ 
tensive  and  overwhelming  ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  a  rationa 
presumption,  that  one  scene  of  glory  will  be  followed  by 
another,  in  perpetual  succession,  while  ages  roll  away. 

If  it  would  require,  even  to  beings  endowed  with  mental 
powers  superior  to  those  of  man,  several  hundreds  of  years 
to  survey  the  diversified  landscapes  which  our  globe  displays, 
to  investigate  the  numerous  chymical  processes  going  on  in 
the  animal,  the  vegetable,  and  the  mineral  kingdoms, 
throughout  the  surface  of  the  earth,  the  recesses  of  the  ocean, 
and  the  subterraneous  regions,  and  to  trace  the  history  o 
every  tribe  of  its  inhabitants  during  a  period  of  six  thousand 

Years _ It  would  require  thousands  of  years  to  explore  the 

planetary  system,  which  presents  a  field  ot  inquiry  two 
thousand  times  more  extensive — how  many  hundreds  o 
thousands  of  millions  of  years  would  be  requisite  to  study 
and  investigate  the  visible  universe  in  all  that  variety  ot 
aspect  to  which  I  have  now  adverted  !—  I  o  explore  the 
diversified  structure  and  arrangements  of  the  bodies  which 
compose  the  solar  system,  and  the  moral  events  which  have 


taken  place  among  its  inhabitants,  would  require  a 
senes  of  a^es.  The  system  of  bodies  connected  with  the 
planet  Saturn,  would,  of  itself,  require  several  hundreds  of 
years  of  study  and  research',  in  order  to  acquire  a  genet al 


218 


the  rniLosormr  of  a  future  state. 


view  of  its  physical,  moral,  and  intellectual  aspects  and  rela¬ 
tions.  Here  we  have  presented  to  view, — 1.  A  globe  of 
vast  dimensions  capable  of  containing  a  population  of  sen¬ 
tient  and  intelligent  beings  more  than  a  hundred  times 
greatei  than  that  ot  the  earth.  2.  1  wo  immense  rings,  the 
one  of  them  containing,  on  both  its  sides,  an  area  of  eight 
thousand  milliotis  of  square  mdes,  and  the  other  an  area  of 
twenty  thousand  millions  of  miles,  and  sufficient  to  contain  a 
population,  one  hundred  and  forty  times  larger  than  that  of 
our  globe,  although  they  were  as  thinly  peopled  as  the  earth 
is  at  present.  3.  Seven  satellites,  or  moons,  each  of  which 
is  undoubtedly  as  large  as  the  globe  on  which  we  live,  and 
some  of  them,  probably,  of  much  greater  dimensions.  The 
magnificent  and  astonishing  scenery  displayed  in  this  planet, 
so  very  different  from  any  thing  that  is  beheld  in  our  terres¬ 
trial  sphere  the  stupendous  luminous  arches  which  stretch 
across  its  firmament,  like  pillars  of  cloud  by  day  and  pillars 
of  fire  by  night — the  diversified  shadows  they  occasionally 
cast  on  the  surrounding  landscape — the  appearance  and  dis¬ 
appearance  of  its  moons,  their  eclipses,  and  diversified  as* 
pects  in  respect  to  each  other,  and  to  the  inhabitants  of  the 
planet  itself,  the  novel  scenes  which  would  appear  in  the 
animal,  vegetable,  and  mineral  kingdoms — the  customs, 
manners,  and  employments  of  the  inhabitants— the  series  of 
events  which  have  happened  among  them,  and  the  tenor  of 
the  Divine  dispensations  in  relation  to  their  past  history  and 
their  future  destination — these  and  a  thousand  other  particu¬ 
lars,  of  which  we  can  form  no  distinct  conception — could  not 
fail  to  afford  a  sublime  and  delightful  gratification  to  a  ra¬ 
tional  intelligence  for  a  series  of  ages. 

It  is  probable,  too,  that  even  within  the  boundaries  of  our 
solar  system,  important  physical  and  moral  revolutions  have 
happened  since  its  creation,  besides  those  which  have  agitat¬ 
ed  the  world  in  which  we  dwell.  On  the  surface  of  the  planet 
Jupiter,  changes  are  occasionally  taking  place,  visible  at  the 
remote  distance  at  which  we  are  placed.  The  diversity  of 
appearance  which  has  been  observed  in  the  substances  term¬ 
ed  its  hells ,  in  whatever  they  may  consist,  or  from  whatever 
cause  this  diversity  may  originate,— indicates  changes  as 
great,  as  if  the  whole  mass  of  clouds  which  overhang  Europe, 
and  the  northern  parts  of  Asia  and  America,  were  to  be 
completely  swept  away,  and  suspended  in  dense  strata  over 
the  Pacific  and  the  Indian  oceans, — or  as  if  the  waters  of  the 
Atlantic  ocean,  were  to  overflow  the  continent  of  America, 


WORLDS  BELONGING  TO  THE  SOLAR  SYSTEM.  219 

and  leave  its  deepest  caverns  exposed  to  view. — There  were 
lately  discovered,  between  the  orbits  of  Mars  and  Jupiter, 
four  small  planetary  bodies ;  and,  on  grounds  which  are 
highly  probable,  astronomers  have  concluded,  that  they  once 
formed  a  larger  body  which  moved  in  the  same  region,  and 
which  had  burst  asunder  by  some  immense  eruptive  force 
proceeding  from  its  central  parts.  This  probable  circum¬ 
stance,  together  with  a  variety  of  singular  phenomena  exhi. 
bited  by  these  planets,  naturally  lead  us  to  conclude,  that 
some  important  moral  revolutions  had  taken  place,  in  relation 
to  the  beings  with  which  it  was  peopled ;  and  suggest  to  the 
mind  a  variety  of  sublime  and  interesting  reflections  respect¬ 
ing  scenes  either  of  joy  or  terror,  which  may  hereafter  be 
disclosed. — The  planet  Mars,  in  several  respects,  bears  a 
striking  resemblance  to  our  earth.  Its  rotation  round  its  axis 
is  accomplished  in  nearly  the  same  time  as  the  earth,  name¬ 
ly,  in  24  hours  and  40  minutes.  The  inclination  of  its  axis 
to  the  plane  of  its  orbit  is  28  degrees  42  minutes,  that  of  the 
earth  being  23  degrees  28  minutes.  Consequently,  it  ex¬ 
periences  a  diversity  of  seasons,  and  different  lengths  of 
days  and  nights,  as  we  do  in  our  sublunary  sphere.  Hence 
Sir  William  Herschel  informs  us,  that  he  observed  a  lumi¬ 
nous  zone  about  the  poles  of  this  planet,  which  is  subject  to 
periodical  changes,  and  is  of  opinion,  that  this  phenomenon 
is  produced  by  the  reflection  of  the  sun’s  light  upon  its  polar 
regions,  and  that  the  variation  in  the  magnitude  and  appear¬ 
ance  of  this  zone  is  owing  to  the  melting  of  these  masses  of 
polar  ice.  Its  atmosphere  is  likewise  found  to  be  very  dense 
and  obscure  ;  which  is  the  cause  of  that  ruddy  appearance 
which  this  orb  uniformly  exhibits.  These  circumstances  in¬ 
dicate  a  striking  similarity,  in  its  physical  constitution,  to 
that  of  the  earth.  Whether  the  moral  state  of  its  inhabitants 
bears  any  resemblance  to  the  present  condition  of  mankind, 
is  a  question  which  naturally  suggests  itself,  and  which  may 
possibly  be  solved  in  the  future  state  to  which  we  are  destin¬ 
ed.  Frost  and  snow,  the  accumulation  and  melting  of  vast 
masses  of  polar  ice,  long  nights,  and  wintry  storms,  scenes 
of  darkness  and  desolation,  stormy  clouds,  and  a  dense 
hazy  atmosphere  surcharged  with  wintry  exhalations,  do  not 
appear  to  be  the  characteristics  of  a  world  where  perfect 
happiness  is  enjoyed.  The  Sun,  which  is  the  centre  of  our 
system,  and  which  enlightens  surrounding  worlds  with  his 
beams,  is  five  hundred  times  larger  than  all  the  planets  and 
moons  taken  together.  And,  since  we  perceive  frequent 


220 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


changes  taking  place  in  his  surface  and  luminous  atmosphere, 
there  is  doubtless  a  variety  of  astonishing  processes  and 
transformations  going  on,  both  in  the  exterior  and  interior 
parts  of  this  immense  luminary,  on  a  scale  of  magnitude  and 
grandeur,  which  it  would  be  highly  gratifying  to  behold  and 
investigate,  and  which  would  raise  to  the  highest  pitch,  our 
conceptions  of  the  magnificence  and  glory  of  Him  “  who 
dwells  in  light  unapproachable.” 

If,  then,  the  planetary  system,  which  occupies  no  larger  a 
portion  of  space  than  one  of  the  smallest  stars  that  twinkle 
in  our  sky,  would  afford  such  a  vast  multiplicity  of  objects 
for  the  contemplation  of  intelligent  beings,  during  a  lapse  ol 
ages> — what  an  immense  assemblage  of  august  objects  and 
astonishing  events  is  presented  before  us  in  the  physical  ar- 
rangements,  and  the  moral  history  of  the  myriads  of  systems 
and  worlds  to  which  I  have  alluded,  and  what  an  immense 
duration  would  be  requisite  for  finite  minds  to  survey  the 
wondrous  scene !  This  consideration  suggests  an  idea  of  du 
ration,  which  to  limited  intellects  such  as  ours,  seems  tc 
approximate  to  the  idea  of  eternity  itself.  Even  although  if 
could  be  shown,  that  creation  extended  no  farther  than  the 
utmost  bounds  which  the  ingenuity  of  man  has  enabled  him 
to  penetrate,  still,  the  vast  assemblage  of  glorious  objects 
contained  within  the  range  of  our  assisted  vision,  shows  what 
an  infinite  variety  of  mental  gratification  the  Creator  may 
bestow  on  his  intelligent  offspring  ;  and  we  are  assured,  that 
‘no  good  thing  will  he  withhold  from  them  that  walk  uprightly.’ 

But,  would  it  be  reasonable  to  admit,  that  the  dormnions 
of  the  universal  Sovereign-  terminate  at  the  boundaries  of 
human  vision  ?  Can  we  believe,  that  puny  man,  who  occu¬ 
pies  so  diminutive  a  speck  among  the  works  of  God,  has 
penetrated  to  the  utmost  limits  of  the  empire  of  Him  who  fills 
the  immensity  of  space  with  his  presence.  As  soon  might 
we  suppose,  that  a  snail  couid  penetrate  to  the  utmost  ex¬ 
tremity  of  the  ocean,  and,  with  one  glance,  survey  its  deep¬ 
est  caverns;  or,  that  a  microscopic  animalcula,  which  is 
confined  to  a  drop  of  water,  in  the  crevice  of  a  small  stone, 
could  explore  at  one  comprehensive  view,  the  regions  of 
Europe,  Asia,  Africa,  and  America.  Shall  we  consider  the 
visible  system  of  nature, — magnificent  and  extensive  as  it  is, 
— a  palace  sufficient  for  the  habitation  of  the  Deity?  No  : 
this  would  be,  to  circumscribe  the  Almighty  within  the  limits 
of  our  imperfect  vision,  and  within  the  sphere  of  our  com¬ 
prehension.  “  Behold,  the  heavens,  and  the  heaven  of  hea* 


IMMENSITY  OF  OBJECTS  IN  CREATION. 


221 


vens,  cannot  contain  Him  !”  This  declaration  implies,  that, 
beyond  all  that  the  inhabitants  of.  this  world  can  explore  in 
the  visible  firmament,  there  is  a  “  heaven  of  heavens ” — a 
region  which  contains  unnumbered  firmaments,  as  glori- 
ous  and  extensive  as  that  which  we  behold, — throughout  the 
vast  extent  of  which,  the  Deity  is  eternally  and  essentially 
present.  With  regard  to  all  that  is  visible  by  the  unassisted 
eye,  or  by  the  telescope,  in  the  vault  of  heaven,  we  may  say 
with  the  poet: — 

“  Vast  concave !  ample  doom !  wast  thou  design’d 
A  meet  apartment  for  the  Deity  ? 

Not  so :  that  thought  alone  thy  state  impairs, 

Thy  lofty  sinks,  and  shallows  thy  profound , 

And  straitens  thy  diffusive ;  dwarfs  the  whole, 

And  makes  an  universe  an  orrery 

Beyond  the  wide  circumference  of  that  sphere  which  ter¬ 
minates  the  view  of  mortals,  a  boundless  region  exists,  which 
no  human  eye  can  penetrate,  and  which  no  finite  intelligence 
can  explore.  To  suppose  that  the  infinitely  extended  region 
which  surrounds  all  that  is  visible  in  creation,  is  a  mere 
void,  would  be  as  unreasonable,  as  to  have  affirmed,  prior 
to  the  invention  of  the  telescope,  that  no  stars  existed  beyond 
those  which  are  visible  to  the  naked  eye.  When  we  con¬ 
sider  the  limited  faculties  of  man,  and  the  infinite  attributes 
of  the  Eternal  Mind,  we  have  the  highest  reason  to  conclude, 
that  it  is  but  a  very  small  portion  of  the  works  of  God  which 
has  been  disclosed  to  our  view.  “  Could  you  soar  beyond 
the  moon,  (says  a  well-known  writer)  and  pass  through  all 
the  planetary  choir;  could  you  wing  your  way  to  the  highest 
apparent  star,  and  take  your  stand  on  one  of  those  loftiest 
pinnacles  of  heaven,  you  would  there  see  other  skies  expand¬ 
ed,  another  sun  distributing  his  beams  by  day,  other  stars 
that  gild  the  alternate  night,  and  other,  perhaps  nobler 
systems  established  in  unknown  profusion  through  the  bound 
less  dimensions  of  space.  Nor  would  the  dominion  of  the 
universal  Sovereign  terminate  there.  Even  at  the  end  of  this 
vast  tour,  you  would  find  yourself  advanced  no  farther  than 
the  suburbs  of  creation — arrived  only  at  the  frontiers  of 
the  great  Jehovah’s  kingdom.” 

It  is  highly  probable,  that,  were  all  the  two  thousand  four 
hundred  millions  of  worlds  to  which  we  have  adverted,  with 
all  the  eighty  millions  of  suns  around  which  they  revolve, 
to  be  suddenly  extinguished  and  annihilated,  it  would  not 

19  * 


222 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTUKK  STATE. 


cause  so  great  a  blank  in  creation,  to  an  eye  that  could  take 
in  the  whole  immensity  of  nature,  as  the"  extinction  of  the 
pleiades,  or  seven  stars,  would  cause  in  our  visible  firmament. 
I  he  range  of  material  existence  may,  indeed,  have  certain 
limits  assigned  to  it  ;  but  such  limits  can  be  perceived  only 
by  that  Eye  which  beholds,  at  one  glance,  the  whole  of 
infinite  space.  To  the  view  of  every  finite  mind,  it  must 
always  appear  boundless  and  incomprehensible.  Were  it 
possible  that  we  could  ever  arrive  at  the  outskirts  of  crea¬ 
tion,  after  having  surveyed  all  that  exists  in  the  material  uni- 
verse,  we  might  be  said,  in  some  measure,  to  comprehend 
the  Creator  himself;  having  perceived  the  utmost  limits  to 
which  his  power  and  intelligence  have  been  extended.  For, 
although  we  admit,  that  the  perfections  of  the  Creator  are 
infinite;  yet  we  have  no  tangible  measure  of  these  perfec. 
tions,  but  what  appears  in  the  immense  variety  and  extent 
of  material  and  intellectual  existence.  And  we  may  hence 
conclude,  that  the  highest  order  of  created  intellects,  after 
spending  myriads  of  ages  in  their  research,  will  never  come 
to  a  period  in  their  investigations  of  the  works  and  the  ways 
of  God. 

Even  although  we  could  conceive  certain  limits  to  the 
material  universe,  and  that,  alter  the  lapse  of  millions  of  ages, 
a  holy  intelligence  had  finished  his  excursions,  and  made  the 
tour  of  the  universal  system  which  now  exists, — yet,  who  can 
set  bounds  to  the  active  energies  of  the  Eternal  Mind,  or 
say,  that  new  systems  of  creation,  different  from  all  that  have 
hitherto  been  constructed,  shall  not  be  perpetually  emerging 
into  existence  ?  By  the  time  a  finite  being  had  explored 
every  object  which  now  exists,  and  acquired  a  knowledge  of 
all  the  moral  and  physical  revolutions  which  have  happened 
among  the  worlds  which,  at  present,  diversify  the  voids  of 
space — a  new  region  of  infinite  space  might  be  replenished 
with  new  orders  of  material  and  intellectual  existence:  and, 
were  he  to  return  to  the  point  from  which  he  at  first  set 
out,  after  numerous  ages  had  elapsed,  he  would,  doubtless, 
behold  new  changes  and  revolutions  in  many  provinces  of 
the  Creator’s  dominions — new  heavens  and  new  earths — and 
new  species  of  sentient  and  intellectual  beings,  different 
from  all  those  he  at  first  contemplated. 

lhat  such  is  the  plan  of  the  Creator’s  operations,  is  not  a 
mere  conjecture  or  surmise,  but  is  warranted  from  observa¬ 
tions  which  have  been  made  on  the  phenomena  of  the  celes¬ 
tial  bodies.  New  stars  have,  at  different  periods,  appeared 


CONTINUED  EXERTION  OF  CREATING  POWER.  223 


in  the  heavens ;  which  are  plain  indications  of  the  continued 
exertion  of  creating  power.  Some  planets  have  burst  asun¬ 
der  into  different  fragments,  and  stars  which  had  shone  for 
ages  have  disappeared,  and  their  existence,  in  their  former 
state,  cannot  now  be  traced.*  Such  facts  evidently  show, 
that  some  important  revolutions  have  taken  place  in  relation 
to  the  bodies  which  have  thus  been  withdrawn  from  our 
view.  H  aving  for  ages  run  their  destined  course,  either  their 
constitution  has  undergone  an  essential  change,  or  they  have 
been  removed  to  another  region  of  immensity,  to  subserve 
other  purposes  in  the  magnificent  arrangements  of  the 
Sovereign  Intelligence.  The  observations  made  by  Sir 
William  Herschel  on  the  nebulous  appearances  in  the  hea¬ 
vens,  and  on  the  changes  and  modifications  which  they  un¬ 
dergo,  lead  to  the  conclusion,  that  new  systems  are  gradually 
forming  in  the  distant  regions  of  the  universe.  And,  if  the 
creating  energy  of  the  Omnipotent  is  at  present  in  constant 
operation,  and  has  been  so  for  ages  past,  who  shall  dare  to 
Mill rm,  that  it  shall  ever  cease  its  exertion  through  all  the 
ages  of  eternity  ? 

Here,  then,  we  have  presented  to  our  contemplation,  an 
assemblage  of  mateiial  and  intelleclual  existence,  to  which 
tiie  human  mind  can  affix  no  boundaries, — which  is  continu¬ 
ally  increasing,  and  still  an  infinity  of  space  remaining  for 
perpetual. accessions,  during  the  lapse  of  endless  ages, — an 
assemblage  of  beings,  which,  in  point  of  number,  of  magni¬ 
tude,  and  of  extent,  seems  to  correspond  with  a  boundless  du¬ 
ration.  So  that,  we  have  no  reason  to  doubt  that  “  the  saints 
in  light”  will  be  perpetually  acquiring  new  discoveries  of  the 
Divine  glory,  new  prospects  into  the  immensity  of  God’s 
operations,  new  views  of  the  rectitude  and  grandeur  of  his 
moral  government,  new  accessions  to  their  felicity,  and  new 
and  transporting  trains  of  thought,  without  the  least  interrup¬ 
tion,  as  long  as  eternity  endures. 

THRONE  OF  GOD. 

There  is  just  one  idea  more  that  may  be  suggested,  in  addi- 
tion  to  the  several  views  exhibited  above,  in  order  to  raise  to 

*  Stars  which  are  marked  in  ancient  catalogues  are  not  now  to  be 
found,  and  others  are  now  visible  which  were  not  known  to  the  ancients. 
Some  have  gradually  increased  in  brilliancy.  Some  that  were  formerly 
variable ,  now  shine  with  a  steady  lustre,  while  iners  have  been  con¬ 
stantly  diminishing  in  brightness. 


224 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OP  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


a  higher  pitch  of  sublimity,  our  views  of  the  grandeur  of  the 
Divine  Being,  and  of  the  magnificence  of  his  works. 

T.  he  Scriptures  frequently  refer  to  a  particular  place, 
circumstance,  or  manifestation,  termed,  the  throne  of  God  ; 
as  in  the  following  passages : — “  Heaven  is  my  throne,  and 
the  earth  is  my  footstool.”  “  The  Lord  hath  prepared  his 
throne  in  the  heavens .”  “  A  glorious  high  throne,  from  the 

beginning,  is  the  place  of  thy  sanctuary.”  “Therefore  are 
they  before  the  throne  of  God,  and  serve  him  day  and  night 
in  his  temple.”  “  Blessing,  and  honour,  and  glory,  and 
power,  be  unto  Him  that  sits  upon  the  throne.” — These,  and 
similar  expressions  and  representations,  must  be  considered, 
either  as  merely  metaphorical,  or  as  referring  to  some  parti- 
cular  region  of  the  universe,  where  the  Divine  glory  is  re¬ 
flected,  in  some  peculiarly  magnificent  manner,  from  material 
objects;  and  where  the  manifestations  of  the  Divine  charac¬ 
ter  are  most  illustriously  displayed.  If  there  be  a  reference 
to  the  splendour  and  magnitude  of  a  particular  portion  of 
creation,  there  is  an  astronomical  idea,  which  may  help  us  to 
form  some  conception  of  this  “  glorious  high  throne”  which 
is  the  peculiar  residence  of  the  Eternal.  It  is  now  considered 
by  astronomers,  as  highly  probable,  if  not  certain,  from  late 
observations,  from  the  nature  of  gravitation,  and  other  cir¬ 
cumstances,  that  all  the  systems  of  the  universe  revolve  round 
one  common  centre, — and  that  this  centre  may  bear  as  great 
a  proportion,  in  point  of  magnitude,  to  the  universal  assem¬ 
blage  of  systems,  as  the  sun  does  to  his  surrounding  planets. 
And,  since  our  sun  is  five  hundred  times  larger  than  the  earth, 
and  all  the  other  planets  and  their  satellites  taken  together ; 
on  the  same  scale,  such  a  central  body  would  be  five  hundred 
times  larger  than  all  the  systems  and  worlds  in  the  universe. 
Here,  then,  may  be  a  vast  universe  of  itself;  an  example  of 
material  creation,  exceeding  all  the  rest  in  magnitude  and 
splendour,  and  in  which  are  blended  the  glories  of  every  other 
system.  If  this  is  in  reality  the  case,  it  may,  with  the  most 
emphatic  propriety,  be  termed,  The  Throne  of  God. 

This  is  the  most  sublime  and  magnificent  idea  that  can 
possibly  enter  into  the  mind  of  man.  We  feel  oppressed  and 
overwhelmed  in  endeavouring  to  form  even  a  faint  represen¬ 
tation  of  it.  But,  however  much  it  may  overpower  our  feeble 
conceptions,  we  ought  not  to  revolt  at  the  idea  of  so  glorious 
an  extension  of  the  works  of  God  ;  since  nothing  less  mag. 
nificent  seems  suitable  to  a  being  of  infinite  perfections. — 
This  grand  central  body  may  be  considered  as  the  Capital  of 


THRONE  OF  GOD. 


225 


the  universe.  From  this  glorious  centre,  embassies  may  be 
occasionally  despatched  to  all  surrounding  worlds,  in  every 
region  of  space.  Here,  too,  deputations  from  all  the  differ- 
enf  provinces  of  creation,  may  occasionally  assemble,  and  the 
inhabitants  of  different  worlds  mingle  with  each  other,  and 
learn  the  grand  outlines  of  those  physical  operations  and 
moral  transactions,  which  have  taken  place  in  their  respect- 
ive  spheres.  Here  may  be  exhibited  to  the  view  of  unnum¬ 
bered  multitudes,  objects  of  sublimity  and  glory,  which  are 
nowhere  else  to  be  found  within  the  wide  extent  of  creation. 
Here,  intellio-ences  of  the  highest  order,  who  have  attained 
the  most  sublime  heights  of  knowledge  and  virtue,  may  form 
the  principal  part  of  the  population  of  this  magnificent  region. 
Here,  the  glorified  body  of  the  Redeemer  may  have  taken 
its  principal  station,  as  “  the  head  of  all  principalities  and 
powers  and  here  likewise,  Enoch  and  Elijah  may  reside, 
in  the  mean  time,  in  order  to  learn  the  history  of  the  magni¬ 
ficent  plans  and  operations  of  Deity,  that  they  may  be  ena¬ 
bled  to  communicate  intelligence  respecting  them  to  their 
brethren  of  the  race  of  Adam,  when  they  shall  again  mingle 
with  them  in  the  world  allotted  for  their  abode,  after  the  ge¬ 
neral  resurrection.  Here,  the  grandeur  of  the  Deity,  the 
glory  of  his  physical  and  moral  perfections,  and  the  immen¬ 
sity  of  his  empire,  may  strike  the  mind  with  more  bright  ef¬ 
fulgence,  and  excite  more  elevated  emotions  of  admiration 
and  rapture,  than  in  any  other  province  of  universal  nature. 
In  fine,  this  vast  and  splendid  central  universe  may  constitute 
that  august  mansion  mentioned  in  Scripture,  under  the  de¬ 
signation  of  the  THIRD  HEAVENS - TIIE  THRONE  OF  THE 

ETERNAL - THE  HEAVEN  OF  HEAVENS - THE  HIGH  AND  HOLY 

PLACE - and  THE  LIGHT  THAT  IS  INACCESSIBLE  AND  FULL  OF 

GLORY.* 

*  Within  the  limits  of  the  last  150  years,  it  has  been  found,  that  the 
principal  fixed  stars  have  a  certain  apparent  motion,  which  is  nearly 
uniform  and  regular,  and  is  quite  perceptible  in  the  course  of  thirty  or 
forty  years.  The  star  Arcturus ,  for  example,  has  been  observed  to  move 
three  minutes  and  three  seconds  in  the  course  of  seventy-eight  years. 
Most  of  the  stars  have  moved  toward  the  south.  The  stars  in  the  north¬ 
ern  quarter  of  the  heavens  seem  to  widen  their  relative  positions,  while 
those  in  the  southern  appear  to  contract  their  distances.  These  motions 
seem  evidently  to  indicate,  that  the  earth,  and  all  the  other  bodies  of  the 
solar  system,  are  moving  in  a  direction  from  the  stars,  in  the  southern 
part  of  the  sky,  toward  those  in  the  northern.  Dr.  Herschel  thinks,  that 
a  comparison  of  the  changes  now  alluded  to,  indicates  a  motion  of  our 
sun  with  his  attending  planets  towards  the  constellation  Hercules.  This 
progressive  movement  which  our  system  makes  in  absolute  space,  is 


226 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


Pernaps  some  whose  minds  are  not  accustomed  to  such 
bold  excursions  through  the  regions  of  material  existence,- 
may  be  apt  to  consider  the  grand  idea  which  has  now  been 
suggested,  and  many  of  the  preceding  details  as  too  impro- 
bable  and  extravagant  to  claim  our  serious  attention,  fn 
reply  to  such  an  insinuation,  let  it  be  considered,  in  the  first 
place,  that  nothing  has  been  stated  but  what  corresponds  to 
the  whole  analogy  of  nature,  and  to  several  sublime  intima¬ 
tions  contained  in  the  system  of  Divine  Revelation.  It  is  a 
fact,  which,  in  the  present  day,  cannot  be  denied  by  any  one 
acquainted  with  the  subject,  that  the  material  universe,  as  far 
as  our  eye  and  our  glasses  can  carry  us,  consists  of  a  count¬ 
less  multitude  of  vast  bodies,  which  completely  baffle  our 
feeble  powers  in  attempting  to  form  any  adequate  conception 
of  them.  This  amazing  fact,  placed  within  the  evidence  of 
our  senses,  shows  us,  that  it  is  impossible  for  the  human  mind 
to  form  too  extravagant  ideas  of  the  universe,  or  to  conceive 
its  structure  to  be  more  glorious  and  magnificent  than  it  re¬ 
ally  is.* 

justly  supposed  to  be  a  portion  of  that  curve,  which  the  sun  describes 
around  the  centre  of  that  hebula  to  which  he  belongs ;  and,  that  all  the 
other  stars  belonging  to  the  same  nebula,  describe  similar  curves.  And 
since  the  universe  appears  to  be  composed  of  thousands  of  nebula, ,  or 
starry  systems,  detached  from  each  other,  it  is  reasonable  to  conclude, 
that  all  the  starry  systems  of  the  universe  revolve  round  one  common 
centre,  whose  bulk  and  attractive  influence  are  proportionable  to  the 
size  and  the  number  of  the  bodies  which  perform  their  revolutions 
around  it.  We  know,  that  the  law  of  gravitation  extends  its  influence 
from  the  sun  to  the  planet  Herschel ,  at  the  distance  of  eighteen  hun¬ 
dred  millions  of  miles,  and  to  the  remotest  parts  of  the  orbits  of  the 
comets,  which  stretch  far  beyond  this  limit;  and  there  is  the  strongest 
reason  to  believe,  that  it  forms  a  connecting  bond  between  all  the 
bodies  of  the  universe,  however  distant  from  each  other.  This  being 
admitted, — the  motion  of  the  different  systems  now  alluded  to,  and 
the  immensity  of  the  central  body,  from  which  motion  of  every  kind 
originates,  to  produce  the  order  and  harmony  of  the  universe, — ap¬ 
pear  to  be  necessary,  in  order  to  preserve  the  balance  of  the  universal 
system,  and  to  prevent  the  numerous  globes  in  the  universe  from 
gradually  approaching  each  other,  in  the  course  of  ages,  and  becoming 
one  universal  wreck. — We  are  mechanically  connected  with  the  most 
distant  stars  visible  through  our  telescopes,  by  means  of  light ,  which 
radiates  from  those  distant  luminaries,  mingles  with  the  solar  rays,  pene¬ 
trates  our  atmosphere,  and  affects  our  optic  nerves  with  the  sensation 
of  colours,  similar  to  those  produced  by  the  rays  of  the  sun.  And  wo 
have  equal  reason  to  conclude,  that  we  are  likewise  mechanically  con 
nected  with  these  bodies  by  the  law  of  gravitation.  So  that  the  idea 
thrown  out  above,  however  grand  and  overwhelming  to  our  feeblo 
powers,  is  not  a  mere  conjecture,  but  is  founded  on  observation,  and  on 
the  general  analogies  of  the  universe. 

*  In  descending  to  the  minute  parts  of  nature,  we  obtain  ocular  de¬ 
monstration  of  facts  which  overpower  our  faculties,  and  which  would 


GRANDEUR  OF  THE  DEITY. 


227 


Again,  nothing  short  of  such  sublime  and  magnificent  con- 
ceptions  seems  at  all  suitable  to  the  idea  of  a  Being  of  inf. 
nite  -perfection  and  of  eternal  duration.  If  we  admit,  that  the 
Divine  Being  is  infinite ,  pervading  the  immensity  of  space 
with  his  presence,  why  should  we  be  reluctant  to  admit  the 
idea,  that  his  Almighty  energy  is  exerted  throughout  the  bound¬ 
less  regions  of  space?  for  it  is  just  such  a  conclusion  as  the 
notion  of  an  infinite  intelligence  should  naturally  lead  us  to 
deduce.  Whether  does  it  appear  to  correspond  more  with 
the  notion  of  an  infinite  Being,  to  believe,  that  his  creative 
power  has  been  confined  to  this  small  globe  of  earth,  and  a 
few  sparkling  studs  fixed  in  the  canopy  of  the  sky,  or  to  ad¬ 
mit,  on  the  ground  of  observation  and  analogy,  that  he  has 
launched  into  existence  millions  of  worlds — that  all  the  mil- 
lions  of  systems  within  the  reach  of  our  vision,  are  but  as 
a  particle  of  vapour  to  the  ocean,  when  compared  with  the 
myriads  which  exist  in  the  unexplored  regions  of  immensity — 
that  the  whole  of  this  vast  assemblage  of  suns  and  worlds 
revolves  around  the  grand  centre  of  the  universe — and  that 
this  centre  where  the  throne  of  God  is  placed,  is  superior  to 
all  the  other  provinces  of  creation  in  magnitude,  beauty,  and 
magnificence  ?  Who  would  dare  to  prove  that  such  concep¬ 
tions  are  erroneous,  or  impossible,  or  unworthy  of  that  Being 
who  sits  on  the  throne  of  the  universe  ?  To  attempt  such  a 
proof  would  be  nothing  less  than  to  set  bounds  to  Omnipo¬ 
tence — to  prescribe  limits  to  the  operations  of  him  “  whose 
ways  are  past  finding  out.” 

“  Can  man  conceive  beyond  wliat  God  can  do  ? 

Nothing  but  quite  impossible  is  hard. 

He  summons  into  being  with  like  ease 
A  whole  creation ,  and  a  single  grain. 

Speaks  he  the  word  ?  a  thousand  worlds  are  born  ! 

A  thousand  worlds  ?  There’s  space  for  millions  more ; 

And  in  what  space  can  his  great  Fiat  fail  ? 

Condemn  me  not,  cold  critic!  but  indulge 
The  warm  imagination ;  why  condemn  ? 
s 

be  altogether  incredible,  were  they  not  placed  within  the  evidence  of 
the  senses.  In  a  drop  of  water,  in  which  certain  vegetable  substances 
have  been  infused,  millions  of  living  creatures  have  been  seen;  and, 
in  some  instances,  where  the  animalculae  are  transparent,  their  eyes, 
and  the  peristaltic  motion  of  their  bowels  have  been  perceived.  The 
minuteness  of  the  blood-vessels,  and  other  parts  of  the  structure  of  such 
creatures,  is  a.s  wonderful,  and  as  incomprehensible,  on  the  one  hand, 
as  the  magnitude  and  immensity  of  the  universe  are  on  the  other, — 
demonstrating,  that,  in  the  works  of  the  Creator,  there  is  an  infinity 
on  either  hand,  which  limited  intellects  will  never  be  able  fully  to  com 
prehend. 


228 


tiie  philosophy  of  a  future  state. 


Why  not  indulge  such  thoughts  as  swell  our  hearts 
With  fuller  admiration  of  that  Power 

Which  gives  our  hearts  with  such  high  thoughts  to  swell ? 

Why  not  indulge  in  his  augmented  praise  1 
Darts  not  his  glory  a  still  brighter  ray, 

The  less  is  left  of  chaos,  and  the  realms 
Of  hideous  night  1” 

Th  ese  views  and  reasonings  are  fully  corroborated  by  the 
sublime  descriptions  of  Deity  contained  in  the  Holy  Scrip¬ 
tures. — “  Canst  thou  by  searching  find  out  God  ?  canst  thou 
find  qut  the  Almighty  to  perfection  ?”  “  He  is  the  High  and 
Lofty  One  who  inhabiteth  eternity” — “  He  is  glorious  in 
Power” — “  He  dwells  in  light  unapproachable  and  full  of 
glory” — “  Great  is  our  Lord,  and  of  great  power,  his  great¬ 
ness  is  unsearchable  ;  his  understanding  is  infinite” — “  Can 
any  thing  be  too  hard  for  Jehovah?” — “The  everlasting  God 
the  Lord,  the  Creator  of  the  ends  of  the  earth,  fainteth  not, 
neither  is  weary,  there  is  no  searching  of  his  understanding” 
— “  He  doth  great  things,  past  finding  out,  and  wonders  with¬ 
out  number.” — “  He  meteth  out  the  heavens  with  a  span,  and 
comprehendeth  the  dust  of  the  earth  in  a  measure.” — “  By 
the  word  of  the  Lord  were  the  heavens  made,  and  all  the 
host  of  them  by  the  Spirit  of  his  mouth.” — “  He  spake,  and 
it  was  done  ; — He  commanded,  and  it  stood  fast.” — “  He 
stretched  forth  the  heavens  alone,  and  bringeth  forth  their 
hosts  by  number.” — “  Lo,  these  are  parts  of  his  ways,  but 
how  little  a  portion  is  heard  of  him  ;  and  the  thunder  ot  his 
power  who  can  understand  ?  Behold,  the  heaven,  and  the 
heaven  of  heavens  cannot  contain  him  !” — “  The  heavens 
declare  the  glory  of  God,  and  the  firmament  showeth  forth 
his  handy-work.” — “Thine,  O  Lord!  is  the  greatness,  and 
the  glory,  and  the  majesty,  for  all  in  heaven  and  earth  is 
thine,  and  thou  art  exalted  above  all.” — “  Behold,  the  hea- 
ven  and  the  heaven  of  heavens  is  the  Lord’s” — “Jehovah 
hath  prepared  his  throne  in  the  heavens,  and  his  kingdom 
ruleth  over  all.” — “I  will  speak  of  the  glorious  honour  of  thy 
majesty ,  and  of  thy  wondrous  works.” — “Blessed  be  thy  glo¬ 
rious  name,  who  art  exalted  above  all  blessing  and  praise.” — 
“Thou,  even  thou,  art  Lord  alone;  thou  hast  made  heaven, 
the  heaven  of  heavens,  with  all  their  host,  thou  prevervesi 
them  all,  and  the  host  of  heaven  worshipped!  thee.”  “  Who 
can  utter  the  mighty  acts  of  the  Lord?  who  can  show  forth 
all  his  praise  ?” — “  Touching  the  Almighty,  we  cannot  find 
him  out.”  “  He  is  excellent  in  power,  and  his  glory  is  above 
the  earth  and  heavens.” 


229 


THE  DEITY  MANIFESTED  IN  HIS  OPERATIONS. 

Such  sublime  descriptions  of  the  Divine  Being,  which  are 
interspersed  throughout  various  parts  of  Revelation,  lead  us 
to  form  the  most  august  conceptions  of  his  creative  energy, 
and  plainly  indicate,  that  it  is  impossible  for  the  highest  cre¬ 
ated  intellect  to  form  a  more  magnificent  idea  of  his  designs 
and  operations  than  what  in  reality  pxists. 

In  short,  though  some  of  the  preceding  views  may  not 
precisely  correspond  to  the  facts  which  shall  ultimately  be 
found  to  exist  in  the  universe,— they  ought  nevertheless  to 
be  entertained  and  rendered  familiar  to  the  mind,  since  they 
open  a  sublime  and  interesting  train  of  thinking ;  and  since 
they  cannot  go  beyond  the  magnificence  of  Jehovah  s  king¬ 
dom,  nor  be  very  different  from  what  actually  exists  in  the 
universe.  They  form  a  kind  of  sensible  substratum  of  thought 
for  the  mind  to  fix  upon,  when  it  attempts  to  frame  the  loftiest 
conceptions  of  the  object  of  our  adoration.— It  may  be  laid 
down  ts  a  principle  which  ought  never  to  be  overlooked  in 
Tueoloa-y,  that  our  conceptions  of  the  grandeur  of  God  are 
precisely ,  or,  at  least,  nearly  commensurate  with  our  conceptions 
of  the  grandeur  and  extent  of  his  operations  throughout  the 
universe.  We  all  admit,  that  the  Deity  is  infinite,  both  in 
respect  of  space  and  of  duration.  But,  an  infinity  of  empty 
space,  and  an  infinity  of  duration,  abstractly  considered, 
convey  no  precise  or  tangible  ideas  to  the  mind,  to  guide 
it  in  forming  distinct  conceptions  of  the  Deity  or  of  any  other 
beino-s.  It  is  only  when  the  immensity  of  space  is  consider¬ 
ed  as  diversified  with  an  immense  variety  and  multiplicity  of 
objects  and  when  eternal  duration  is  contemplated  as  con¬ 
nected  with  a  constant  succession  of  glorious  scenes  and 
transactions,  that  the  soul  of  man  can  expand  its  views  and 
elevate  its  conceptions  of  the  incomprehensible  Jehovah. 

If  these  sentiments  be  admitted,  it  will  follow,  that  the  man 
whose  ideas  are  confined  within  the  limits  of  a  few  hundred 
miles,  or  even  within  the  range  of  the  globe  we  inhabit,  must 
have  'his  views  of  Deity  confined  within  the  same  sphere. 
For  we  have  no  sensible  measures  of  the  attributes  of  God, 
but  those  which  are  derived  from  the  number  aaid  extent  of 
his  actual  operations.  When  we  attempt  to  think  of  Him, 
without  the  assistance  of  his  visible  works,  our  thoughts  in¬ 
stantly  run  into  confusion,  and  sink  into  inanity'.  And  since 
we  find,  that  the  material  works  of  God  are  so  “  great  above 
all  measure,”  so  widely  extended,  and  so  magnificent  in  the 
scale  of  their  operation,  it  is  of  the  utmost  importance,  in  a 
religious  point  of  view,  that  the  mind  accustom  itself  to  range 


230 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OP  A  FUTUREnSTATE, 


at  large  through  the  wide  extent  of  creation — to  trace,  by 
analogy,  from  what  is  known,  the  probable  magnitude,  ar¬ 
rangement,  and  grandeur  of  what  is  removed  beyond  the 
limits  of  our  vision — to  add  magnitude  to  magnitude,  system 
to  system,  and  motion  to  motion,  till  our  thoughts  are  over¬ 
whelmed  with  the  mighty  idea.  And,  though  we  may  occa¬ 
sionally  frame  some  erroneous  or  inadequate  notions,  when 
forming  our  conceptions  of  certain  subordinate  particulars, 
yet,  we  need  not  fear,  that,  in  point  of  number,  magnitude, 
and  variety,  our  conceptions  can  ever  go  beyond  the  realities 
which  exist  within  the  range  of  universal  nature,  unless  we 
suppose  that  “  man  can  conceive  beyond  what  God  can  do.” 
Such  trains  of  thought  will  tend  to  expand  and  elevate  the 
mind,  and  give  it  a  sublime  turn  of  thinking ;  and  will  natu¬ 
rally  produce  an  ardent  desire  of  beholding  a  brighter  dis¬ 
play  of  the  magnificence  of  the  Creator  in  the  eternal  vyorld. 


From  what  has  been  now  detailed  respecting  the  numerous 
and  august  objects  that  may  be  presented  to  the  contempla¬ 
tion  of  celestial  intelligences,  we  may  conclude,  that  the  chief 
subjects  of  study  in  the  heavenly  world  will  be  History  and 
Philosophy.  Under  the  department  of  history,  may  be  com¬ 
prehended  all  the  details  which  will  be  exhibited  to  them  re¬ 
specting  the  origin,  progress,  and  consummation  of  the  re¬ 
demption  of  man,  and  the  information  they  may  receive 
respecting  the  natural  and  moral  scenery,  and  the  prominent 
providential  occurrences  and  arrangements  of  other  worlds. 

As  it  is  evident,  that  matter  exists  chiefly  for  the  sake  of 
sensitive  and  intelligent  beings,  so,  it  is  highly  probable,  if 
not  demonstratively  certain,  that  the  peopling  of  worlds  with 
rational  creatures  is  intended  chiefly  to  display  the  moral 
character  of  the  Creator  in  his  providential  dispensations, 
and  in  the  whole  series  of  his  moral  administration  towards 
the  numerous  worlds  and  orders  of  creatures  which  exist 
throughout  his  dominions.  All  his, other  perfections,  parti¬ 
cularly  his  power  and  intelligence,  appear  to  be  exerted  in 
subserviency  to  this  grand  object,  and  to  the  distribution  of 
happiness  throughout  the  universe.  In  so  far,  then,  as  the 
facts  respecting  his  moral  government,  in  other  worlds,  are 
made  known  to  the  redeemed  in  heaven,  in  so  far  will  their 
views  of  his  moral  attributes,  and  of  the  principles  of  his  ad- 
ministration  in  the  universe,  be  enlarged  and  expanded.  In 


MORAL  ADMINISTRATION  OF  THE  DEITY. 


231 


the  disclosures  which,  in  the  course  of  ages,  may  be  made 
on  this  subject,  displays  of  the  eternal  righteousness  of  Jeho¬ 
vah,  of  his  retributive  justice ,  of  his  “  tender  mercy,”  and  of 
his  boundless  benevolence ,  may  be  exhibited,  which  will  asto¬ 
nish  and  enrapture  the  mind  more  highly  than  even  the  mag¬ 
nificence  and  grandeur  of  his  physical  operations,  and  fill  it 
with  admiration  of  the  amiable  and  adorable  excellencies  of 
the  Sovereign  Ruler  of  the  universe.  If  we  account  it  a 
pleasant  study  to  investigate  the  habits  and  economy  of  some 
of  the  insect  tribes  ;  if  we  should  reckon  it  highly  gratifying 
to  learn  the  history  of  all  the  events  which  have  befallen 
every  nation  and  tribe  of  mankind  since  the  world  began, 
particularly  those  which  relate  to  our  first  parents  in  para¬ 
dise,  and  after  their  expulsion  from  it, — to  the  antediluvians, 
to  the  ten  tribes  of  Israel,  to  the  Christians  in  the  first  cen¬ 
turies,  to  the  Waldenses,  to  the  Assyrians,  Babylonians,  and 
American  Indians, — how  delightful  and  gratifying  must  it  be, 
to  learn  the  history  of  angels,  principalities,  and  powers,  and 
to  become  acquainted  with  the  leading  transactions  which 
have  occurred  among  beings  of  a  higher  order  and  of  differ¬ 
ent  species,  dispersed  among  ten  thousands  of  worlds  !  Great 
and  marvellous  as  the  history  of  our  world  and  of  human 
redemption  appears,  it  may  be  far  surpassed  by  the  events 
which  eternity  will  unfold.  “  The  day  is  coming,”  (to  use 
the  words  of  a  celebrated  modern  writer*)  “  when  the  whole 
of  this  wondrous  history  shall  be  looked  back  upon  by  the 
eye  of  remembrance,  and  be  regarded  as  one  incident  in  the 
extended  annals  of  creation,  and  with  all  the  illustration,  and 
all  the  glory  it  has  thrown  on  the  character  of  the  Deity,  will 
it  be  seen  as  a  single  step  in  the  evolution  of  his  designs  ; 
and  long  as  the  time  may  appear,  from  the  first  act  of  our 
redemption  to  its  final  accomplishment,  and  close  and  exclu¬ 
sive  as  wre  may  think  the  attentions  of  God  upon  it,  it  will  be 
found  that  it  has  left  him  room  enough  for  all  his  concerns, 
and  that  on  the  high  scale  of  eternity,  it  is  but  one  of  those 
passing  and  ephemeral  transactions,  which  crowd  the  history 
of  a  never-ending  administration. 

Under  the  department  of  Philosophy  may  be  included  all 
those  magnificent  displays  which  will  be  exhibited  of  the  ex¬ 
tent,  the  magnitude,  the  motions,  the  mechanism,  the  scene- 
ry,  the  inhabitants,  and  the  general  constitution  of  other 
systems,  and  the  general  arrangement  and  order  of  the  uni¬ 
versal  system  comprehended  under  the  government  of  tno 

*  Dr,  Chalmers. 


232 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OP'  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


Almighty.  On  these  topics,  with  all  their  subordinate  and 
infinitely  diversified  ramifications,  the  minds  of  redeemed 
intelligences  from  this  world  will  find  ample  scope  for  the 
exercise  of  all  their  powers,  and  will  derive  from  their  inves. 
tigations  of  them  perpetual  and  uninterrupted  enjoyment, 
throughout  an  endless  existence. 

That  the  subjects  of  contemplation  now  stated,  will  in  re- 
ality  form  the  chief  employments  of  renovated  men  and 
other  intellectual  beings,  in  a  future  state,  may  also  be  prov¬ 
ed  from  the  representations  given  in  the  word  of  God  of  the 
present  exercises  of  these  intelligences.  In  the  book  of 
Revelation,  the  angels,  under  the  figure  of  “  living  creatures 
full  of  eyes,”  and  the  “  elders,”  or  representatives  of  the 
church  of  the  redeemed,  are  represented  as  falling  down  be¬ 
fore  the  throne  of  the  Eternal,  saying,  “  Thou  art  worthy,  O 
Lord,  to  receive  glory,  honour,  and  power,  for  thou  hast 
created  all  things ,  and.  for  thy  pleasure  they  are  and  were 
created.”  Here,  the  material  works  of  God  are  represented 
as  the  foundation  or  reason  of  the  thanksgiving  and  adorations 
of  the  heavenly  host  ;  and  the  language  evidently  implies, 
that  these  works  are  the  subject  of  their  contemplation — that 
they  have  beheld  a  bright  display  of  Divine  perfection  in 
their  structure  and  arrangement — that  they  are  enraptured 
with  the  enlarged  views  of  the  Divine  glory  which  these 
works  exhibit — and  that  their  hearts,  full  of  gratitude  and 
admiration,  are  ever  ready  to  burst  forth  in  ascriptions  of 
“  glory,  honour,  and  power”  to  Him  who  called  the  vast 
assemblage  of  created  beings  into  existence. — In  another 
scene,  exhibited  in  the  same  book,  the  saints  who  had  come 
out  of  great  tribulation,  and  had  gotten  the  victory  over  all 
enemies,  are  represented  with  the  harps  of  God  in  their 
hands,  celebrating  the  Divine  praises  in  this  triumphant  song, 

“  Great  and  marvellous  are  thy  works,  Lord  God  Almighty 
— just  and  true  are  thy  ways,  thou  King  of  saints.” — The 
first  part  of  this  song  maybe  considered  as  the  result  of  their 
contemplations  of  the  magnificent  fabric  of  the  universe,  and 
the  Omnipotent  energies  which  its  movements  display;  and 
the  last  part  of  it  as  the  result  of  their  study  and  investigation 
of  the  moral  government  of  God  in  his  providential  arrange, 
ments  towards  men  and  angels,  and  towards  all  the  worlds 
whose  moral  economy  may  be  opened  to  their  views, 
For  the  words  of  the  song  plainly  imply,  that  they  have  ac- 
quired  such  an  expansive  view  of  the  works  of  God  as  con¬ 
strains  them  to  declare,  that  they  are  “great  and  marvel. 


SOURCES  OF  FUTURE  MISERY. 


233 


lous  and  that  they  have  attained  such  an  intimate  know¬ 
ledge  of  the  Divine  dispensations  towards  the  intelligent  uni. 
verse,  as  enables  them  to  perceive  that  all  the  ways  of  the 
King  of  heaven  are  “  righteous  and  true.” 


From  the  preceding  details  we  may  also  learn,  what  will 
form  one  constituent  part  of  the  misery  of  the  wicked  in  the 
future  world.  As  one  part  of  the  happiness  of  the  righteous 
will  consist  in  “  seeing  God  as  he  is,”  that  is,  in  beholding 
the  Divine  glory  as  displayed  in  the  physical  and  moral  eco¬ 
nomy  of  the  universe, — so,  it  will,  in  all  probability,  form  one 
bitter  ingredient  in  the  future  lot  of  the  unrighteous,  that  they 
shall  be  deprived  of  the  transporting  view  of  the  Creator’s 
glorv,  as  displayed  in  the  magnificent  arrangements  he  has 
made  in  the  system  of  nature.  Confined  to  one  dreary  corner 
of  the  universe,  surrounded  by  a  dense  atmosphere,  or  a 
congeries  of  sable  clouds,  they  will  be  cut  oft  from  all  inter¬ 
course  with  the  regions  of  moral  perfection,  and  prevented 
from  contemplating  the  sublime  scenery  of  the  Creator’s 
empire.  This  idea  is  corroborated  by  the  declarations  of 
Scripture,  where  they  are  represented  “  as  banished  from 
the  new  Jerusalem,”  “  thrust  out  into  outer  darkness,”  and 
reserved  for  11  the  blackness  of  darkness  for  ages  of  ages.” 
And,  nothing  can  be  more  tormenting  to  minds  endowed 
with  capacious  powers,  than  the  thought  of  being  for  ever 
deprived  of  the  opportunity  of  exercising  them  on  the  glori¬ 
ous  objects  which  they  know  to  exist,  but  which  they  can 
never  contemplate,  and  about  which  they  never  expect  to 
hear  any  transporting  information. 

If  it  be  one  end  of  future  punishment  to  make  wicked  men 
sensible  of  their  folly  and  ingratitude,  and  of  the  mercy  and 
favours  they  have  abused,  it  is  probable,  that,  in  that  future 
world  or  region  to  which  they  shall  be  confined,  every  thing 
will  be  so  arranged,  as  to  bring  to  their  recollection,  the  com¬ 
forts  they  had  abused,  and  the  Diviue  goodness  they  had 
despised,  and  to  make  them  feel  sensations  opposite  to  those 
which  were  produced  by  the  benevolent  arrangements  which 
exist  in  the  present  state. — For  example,  in  the  present  eco¬ 
nomy  of  nature,  every  one  of  our  senses,  every  part  of  our 
bodily  structure,  every  movement  of  which  our  animal  frame 
is  susceptible,  and  the  influence  which  the  sun,  the  atmo¬ 
sphere  and  other  parts  of  nature,  produce  on  our  structure 

20* 


234 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


and  feelings,  have  a  direct  tendency  to  communicate  pleas, 
ing  sensations.  But,  in  that  world,  every  agency  of  this 
kind  may  be  reversed,  as  to  the  effect  it  may  produce  upon 
percipient  beings.  Our  sense  ot  touch  is  at  present  accom- 
panied  with  a  thousand  modifications  of  feelings  which  are 
accompanied  with  pleasure ;  but  there,  every  thino-  that 
comes  in  contact  with  the  organs  of  feeling  may  produce  the 
the  most  painful  sensations.  Here ,  the  variety  of  colours 
which  adorn  the  face  of  nature,  delights  the  eye  and  the 
imagination,  there,  the  most  gloomy  and  haggard  objects 
may  at  all  times  produce  a  dismal  and  alarming  aspect  over 
every  part  of  the  surrounding  scene.  Here,  the  most  en- 
chanting  music  frequently  cheers,  and  enraptures  the  human 
heart,  there,  nothing  is  heard  but  the  dismal  sounds  “  of 
weeping,  and  wailing,  and  gnashing  of  teeth.”  Ungrateful 
for  the  manifold  blessings  they  received  in  this  world  from  the 
bountiful  Giver  of  all  good,  the  inhabitants  of  that  dreary  re- 
gi°n  ’"ill  behold  their  sin  in  their  punishment,  in  being  de¬ 
prived  of  every  thing  which  can  administer  to  their  sensitive 
enjoyment. 

With  regard  to  their  moral  state,  similar  effects  will  be  pro¬ 
duced.  Here,  they  hated  the  society  of  the  righteous,  and 
loved  to  mingle  with  evil  doers  in  their  follies  and  their 
crimes;  there ,  they  will  be  for  ever  banished  from  the  com¬ 
pany  of  the  wise  and  the  benevolent,  and  will  feel  the  bit  ter 
effects  of  being  perpetually  chained  to  the  society  of  those 
malignant  associates  who  will  be  their  everlasting  tormentors. 
Here,  they  delighted  to  give  full  scope  to  their  depraved  ap¬ 
petites  and  passions,  there,  they  will  feel  the  bitter  and  horri¬ 
ble  effects  of  the  full  operation  of  such  lusts  and  passions, 
when  unrestrained  by  the  dictates  of  reason,  and  the  autho¬ 
rity  of  the  Divine  law.  If,  to  these  sources  of  sorrow  and 
bitter  deprivations,  be  added  the  consideration,  that,  in  such 
minds,  the  principles  of  malice,  envy,  hatred,  revenge,  and 
every  other  element  of  evil,  which  pervaded  their  souls  while 
in  this  life,  will  rage  without  control,  we  may  form  such  a 
conception  of  future  misery  as  will  warrant  all  the  metaphori¬ 
cal  descriptions  ol  it  which  are  given  in  Divine  Revelation, 
without  supposing  any  further  interposition  of  the  Deity,  in 
the  direct  infliction  of  punishment.  While  he  leaves  them 
simply  to  “  eat  of  the  fruit  of  their  own  ways,  and  to  he  Idled 
with  their  own  devices ,”  their  punishment  must  be  dreadful, 
and  far  surpassing  every  species  of  misery  connected  with 
the  present  state  of  the  moral  world. 


HARMONY  OF  SCIENCE  AND  EEVELATION. 


235 


On  the  other  hand,  a  consideration  of  the  infinitely  diver¬ 
sified  sources  of  bliss  to  which  our  attention  has  been  direct¬ 
ed,  has  a  powerful  tendency  to  impress  the  minds  of  the 
saints  with  a  lively  perception  of  the  unbounded  nature  of 
Divine  benignity,  and  of  l<the  love  of  God  which  is  in  Christ 
Jesus  our  Lord.”  It  is  chiefly  in  connexion  with  such  ex¬ 
pansive  views  of  the  attributes  and  the  government  of  the 
Deity,  that  the  love  of  God  towards  the  Redeemed  appears 
“  boundless,”  and  “  passing  comprehension  ;”  for  it  introdu¬ 
ces  them  into  a  scene  which  is  not  only  commensurate  with 
infinite  duration,  but  is  boundless  in  its  prospects  of  know¬ 
ledge,  of  felicity,  and  of  glory.  And,  therefore,  amidst  all 
the  other  employments  of  the  heavenly  state,  they  will  never 
forget  their  obligation  to  that  unmerited  grace  and  mercy 
which  rescued  their  souls  from  destruction,  but  will  mingle 
with  all  their  sublime  investigations, — ascriptions  of  “bless¬ 
ing,  and  honour,  and  glory,  and  power,  to  Him  that  sits  upon 
the  throne,  and  to  the  Lamb,  for  ever  and  ever.” 

The  substance  of  what  has  been  detailed  in  this  depart¬ 
ment  of  my  subject  may  be  now  briefly  stated  in  the  follow¬ 
ing  summary  : — 

The  redeemed  in  heaven  will  enjoy  perpetual  and  unin¬ 
terrupted  felicity — the  foundation  of  this  felicity  will  be  laid 
in  their  complete  freedom  from  sin,  and  their  attainment  of 
moral  perfection — their  renovated  faculties  will  be  employed 
in  contemplating  the  Divine  glory — the  Divine  glory  consists 
in  the  manifestation  of  the  Divine  perfections — the  sensible 
display  of  these  perfections  will  be  given,  (and  can  only 
be  given)  in  the  works  of  creation,  in  the  intelligences  which 
people  the  material  world,  their  orders,  gradations,  history,  and 
present  state — in  the  variety  of  scenery  which  the  abodes  of 
intelligence  exhibit— in  the  economy  and  moral  order  which 
prevail  among  them, — and  in  the  various  dispensations  of 
Divine  Providence  in  reference  to  all  worlds  and  orders  of 
beings. 

With  regard  to  the  happiness  of  heaven,  the  Scriptures 
convey  to  us,  in  general  propositions,  certain  intimations  of 
its  nature,  qualities,  and  objects,  and  of  the  qualifications 
which  are  requisite  in  order  to  its  enjoyment.  The  discove¬ 
ries  which  science  has  made  in  the  visible  creation,  form  so 
many  illustrations  of  the  scriptural  declarations  on  this  sub¬ 
ject  ;  and  it  is  undoubtedly  our  duty  to  direct  our  trains  of 
thought,  and  to  expand  our  conceptions  of  the  felicities  of  the 


236 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


future  world,  by  every  illustrative  circumstance  which  can  be 
traced  in  the  scene  of  nature  which  the  Almighty  has  pre¬ 
sented  to  our  view.  For  the  word  and  the  works  of  God 
must  always  harmonize,  and  reflect  a  mutual  lustre  on  each 
other.  What  we  find  to  be  actually  existing  within  the  visi 
ble  scene  of  the  universe,  can  never  contradict  any  of  the 
statements  of  Revelation  ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  must  tend  to 
elucidate  some  one  or  other  of  its  interesting  communica¬ 
tions.  And,  since  we  find,  in  our  survey  of  the  system  of 
nature,  an  assemblage  of  astonishing  objects  which  tends  to 
raise  our  conceptions  of  the  Supreme  Being,  and  of  the  sub¬ 
lime  and  diversified  nature  of  future  felicity, — it  becomes  us 
to  prosecute  those  trains  of  thought  which  the  analogies  of 
Nature  and  Revelation  suggest,  in  order  to  enlarge  the  capa¬ 
cities  of  our  minds,  to  exalt  our  ideas  of  celestial  bliss,  and  to 
prepare  us  for  more  expansive  and  sublime  contemplations, 
in  that  world  where  the  physical  and  moral  obstructions 
which  now  impede  our  progress,  and  obscure  our  intellectual 
views  shall  be  completely  and  for  ever  removed. 

From  the  whole  of  what  we  have  stated  on  this  department 
of  our  subject,  we  may  learn  the  value  of  the  human  soul ,  and 
the  importance  which  ought  to  he  attached  to  our  immortal  des¬ 
tination.  What  a  shadow  does  human  life  appear  when  con¬ 
trasted  with  the  scenes  of  futurity  !  What  a  small  point  in 
duration  do  the  revolutions  of  time  present  when  compared 
with  a  boundless  eternity  !  What  a  limited  scene  does  this 
world,  with  all  its  glories,  exhibit,  when  set  in  competition 
with  the  extent  and  the  splendours  of  that  Empire  which 
stretches  out  into  immensity,  and  shall  endure  for  ever  !  And 
is  man  to  be  transported  to  other  regions  of  the  universe,  to 
mingle  with  the  inhabitants  of  other  worlds,  and  to  exist 
throughout  an  endless  duration  ?  What  a  noble  principle  does 
the  human  mind  appear,  when  we  consider  it  as  qualified  to 
prosecute  so  many  diversified  trains  of  thought,  to  engage  in 
so  sublime  investigations,  to  attain  the  summit  of  Moral  Per¬ 
fection,  and  to  expatiate  at  large,  through  the  unlimited  do¬ 
minions  of  the  Almighty,  while  eternal  ages  are  rolling  on  ! 
Hcsw  important,  then,  ought  every  thing  to  be  considered 
which  is  connected  with  the  scene  of  our  eternal  destination  ! 
If  these  truths  be  admitted,  reason,  and  common  sense  de¬ 
clare,  that  a  more  interesting  and  momentous  subject  can¬ 
not  possibly  occupy  the  mind  of  man.  It  is  so  profoundly 
interesting,  and  connected  with  so  many  awful  and  glorious 


IMPORTANCE  OF  IMMORTALITY. 


23  V 


consequences,  that  we  must  be  utterly  dead  to  every  noble 
and  refined  feeling,  if  we  be  altogether  indifferent  about  it. 

If  there  were  only  a  bare  probability  for  the  opinion,  that 
man  is  immortal,  and  that  the  scenes  to  which  I  have  alluded 
might  possibly  be  realized,  it  ought  to  stimulate  the  most  anxi- 
ous  inquiries,  and  awaken  all  the  powers  and  energies  of  out 
souls.  For  it  is  both  our  duty  and  our  highest  interest  to  ob 
tain  light  and  satisfaction,  on  a  point  on  which  our  present 
comfort  and  our  ultimate  happiness  must  depend.  But,  if 
the  Light  of  Nature,  and  the  dictates  of  revelation  both  con- 
spire  to  demonstrate  the  eternal  destiny  of  mankind,  nothing 
can  exceed  the  folly  and  the  infatuation  of  those  who  trifle 
with  their  everlasting  interests,  and  even  try  every  scheme, 
and  prosecute  every  trivial  object,  that  may  have  a  tendency 
to  turn  aside  their  thoughts  from  this  important  subject.  Yet 
how  often  do  we  find,  in  the  conduct  of  the  various  classes  of 
mankind,  the  merest  trifles  set  in  competition  with  the  scenes 
of  happiness  or  of  misery  that  lie  beyond  the  grave.  The  gro¬ 
velling  pleasures  derived  from  hounding  and  horse-racing, 
balls,  masquerades,  and  theatrical  amusements  ;  the  acqui¬ 
sition  of  a  few  paltry  pounds  or  shillings,  the  rattling  of  dice, 
or  the  shuffling  of  a  pack  of  cards,  will  absorb  the  minds  of 
thousands  who  profess  to  be  rational  beings,  while  they  refuse 
to  spend  one  serious  hour  in  reflecting  on  the  fate  of  their 
immortal  spirits,  when  their  bodies  shall  have  dropped  into 
the  tomb.  Nay,  such  is  the  indifference,  and  even  antipathy 
with  which  this  subject  is  treated  by  certain  classes  of  soci¬ 
ety,  that  it  is  considered  as  unfashionable,  and  in  certain 
cases,  would  be  regarded  as  a  species  of  insult,  to  introduce, 
in  conversation,  a  sentiment  or  a  reflection  on  the  eternal  des¬ 
tiny  of  man.  “  The  carelessness  which  they  betray  in  a 
matter  which  involves  their  existence,  their  eternity,  their 
all,  (says  an  energetic  French  writer)  awakes  my  indigna¬ 
tion,  rather  than  my  pity.  It  is  astonishing.  It  is  horrifying. 
It  is  monstrous.  I  speak  not  this  from  the  pious  zeal  of  a 
blind  devotion.  On  the  contrary,  I  affirm,  that  self-love,  that 
self-interest,  that  the  simplest  light  of  reason,  should  inspire 
these  sentiments  ;  and,  in  fact,  for  this  we  need  but  the  per¬ 
ceptions  of  ordinary  men. — It  requires  but  little  elevation  of 
soul  to  discover,  that  here  there  is  no  substantial  delight ; 
that  our  pleasures  are  but  vanity,  that  the  ills  of  life  are  in¬ 
numerable  ;  and  that,  after  all,  death,  which  threatens  us 
every  moment,  must,  in  a  few  years,  perhaps  in  a  few  days, 
place  us  in  the  eternal  condition  of  happiness,  or  misery,  or 
nothingness.” 


238 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTUKF,  STATE. 


It  is,  therefore,  the  imperative  duty  of  every  man  who 
makes  any  pretensions  to  prudence  and  rationality,  to  endea¬ 
vour  to  have  his  mind  impressed  with  a  conviction  of  the 
reality  of  a  future  and  invisible  world,  to  consider  its  impor¬ 
tance,  and  to  contemplate,  in  the  light  of  reason  and  of  reve¬ 
lation,  the  grand  and  solemn  scenes  which  it  displays.  While 
the  least  doubt  hovers  upon  his  mind  in  relation  to  this  subject, 
he  should  give  himself  no  rest  till  it  be  dispelled.  He  should 
explore  every  avenue  where  light  and  information  may  be 
obtained  ;  he  should  prosecute  his  researches  with  the  same 
earnestness  and  avidity  as  the  miser  digs  for  hidden  treasures ; 
and  above  all  things,  he  should  study,  with  deep  attention 
and  humility,  the  revelation  contained  in  the  Holy  Scriptures, 
with  earnest  prayer  to  God  for  light  and  direction.  And  if 
such*inquiries  be  conducted  with  reverence,  with  a  devotional 
and  contrite  spirit,  and  with  perseverance,  every  doubt  and 
difficulty  that  may  have  formerly  brooded  over  his  mind  will 
gradually  evanish,  as  the  shades  of  night  before  the  orient 
sun.  “If  thou  criest  after  knowledge,  and  liftest  up  tby 
voice  for  understanding;  if  thou  seekest  her  as  silver,  and 
searchest  for  her  as  for  hid  treasures — then  shalt  thou  under¬ 
stand  the  tear  of  the  Lord,  and  find  the  knowledge  of  God. 
For  the  Lord  giveth  wisdom,  out  of  his  mouth  cometh  know, 
ledge  and  understanding.  In  all  thy  ways  acknowledge  him, 
and  he  shall  direct  thy  paths.  Then  shall  thy  light  break 
forth  m  obscurity,  and  thy  darkness  shall  be  as  the  noon- 
day.” 

In  fine,  if  we  are  thoroughly  convinced  of  our  relation  to 
an  eternal  world,  it  will  be  our  constant  endeavour  to  culti¬ 
vate  those  heavenly  dispositions  and  virtues,  and  to  prosecute 
that  course  of  action  which  will  prepare  us  for  the  enjoy¬ 
ments  of  the  heavenly  state.  «  For,  without  holiness  no  man 
can  see  the  Lord  and  we  are  assured  that  “no  unclean 
thing  can  enter  the  gates  of  the  New  Jerusalem,”  and  that 
neither  “  thieves,  nor  extortioners,  nor  the  covetous,  nor  the 
effeminate,  nor  drunkards,  nor  revilers,  nor  idolaters,  shall 
inherit  the  Kingdom  of  God.” 


PART  IV. 


ON  THE  MORAL  QUALIFICATIONS  REQUISITE 
TO  THE  ENJOYMENT  OF  THE  FELICITY  OF 
THE  FUTURE  WORLD. 


There  is  scarcely  an  individual  who  admits  the  doctrine 
of  the  immortality  of  man,  who  does  not  indulge  a  certain 
degree  of  hope,  that  he  shall  be  admitted  into  a  happier 
world,  when  his  spirit  wings  its  way  from  this  earthly  scene. 
Even  the  man  of  the  world,  the  profligate,  and  the  debauchee, 
notwithstanding  their  consciousness  of  guilt,  and  of  the  op- 
position  of  their  affections  to  the  Divine  Law,  and  the  duties 
of  the  Christian  life,  are  frequently  found  buoying  themsleves 
up,  in  the  midst  of  their  unhallowed  courses,  with  the  vain 
expectation,  that  an  All-Merqiful  Creator  will  not  suffer  them 
ultimately  to  sink  into  pr„mtion,  but  will  pity  their  weak¬ 
nesses  and  follies,  and  receive  them,  when  they  die,  into  the 
joys  of  heaven.  Such  hopes  arise  from  ignorance  of  the 
divine  character,  and  of  that  in  which  true  happiness  consists, 
and  from  fallacious  views  of  the  exercises  of  a  future  state, 
and  the  nature  of  its  enjoyments.  For,  in  order  to  enjoy 
happiness,  in  any  state,  or  in  any  region  of  the  universe,  the 
mind  must  be  imbued  with  a  relish  for  the  society,  the  con¬ 
templations,  and  the  employments  peculiar  to  that  region  or 
state,  and  feel  an  ardent  desire  to  participate  in  its  enjoy¬ 
ments. 

What  pleasure  would  a  miser  whose  mind  is  wholly  ab¬ 
sorbed  in  the  acquisition  of  riches,  feel  in  a  world  where  nei¬ 
ther  gold  nor  silver,  nor  any  other  object  of  avarice  is  to  be 
found  ?  What  entertainment  would  a  man  whose  chief  en¬ 
joyment  consists  in  hounding,  horse-racing,  routs,  and  mas¬ 
querades,  derive  in  a  scene  where  such  amusements  are  for 
ever  abolished  ?  Could  it  be  supposed  that  those  who  now 
find  their  highest  intellectual  pleasures  in  Novels  and  Ro¬ 
mances,  and  in  listening  to  tales  of  scandal,  would  experience 
any  high  degree  of  enjoyment  in  a  world  where  there  is  no¬ 
thing  but  substantial  realities,  and  where  the  inhabitants  are 


*540 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


united  in  bonds  of  the  purest  affection? — or,  that  those  minds 
never  rise  beyond  the  pleasure  of  gambling,  card-playing, 
and  gossipping  chit-chat,  would  feel  any  relish  for  the  refin¬ 
ed  enjoyments,  the  sublime  contemplations,  and  the  enraptur¬ 
ed  praises  of  the  heavenly  inhabitants  ?  All  the  arrange¬ 
ments  of  the  eelestial  state  behooved  to  be  changed  and  over¬ 
turned,  and  angels,  archangels,  and  redeemed  men,  banished 
from  its  abodes,  before  such  characters  could  find  entertain¬ 
ments  agreeable  to  their  former  habits  and  desires.  Although 
they  were  admitted  into  the  mansions  of  bliss  they  would  be 
miserably  disappointed  ;  and  would  feel  themselves  in  a 
situation  similar  to  that  of  a  rude  savage  or  a  Russian  boor, 
were  he  to  be  introduced  into  an  assembly  of  princes  and 
nobles.  They  would  perceive  nothing  congenial  to  their 
former  pursuits;  they  would  feel  an  inward  reluctance  to 
the  pure  and  holy  exercises  of  the  place,  and  they  would 
anxiously  desire  to  fly  away  to  regions  and  to  companions 
more  adapted  to  their  grovelling  views  and  affections.  For  it 
is  the  decree  of  Heaven, — a  decree  founded  on  the  moral 
laws  which  govern  the  intelligent  universe,  and  which,  like 
the  law  of  the  Medes  and  Persians,  cannot  be  changed, — 
that,  “  Without  holiness  no  man  can  see  the  Lord”  and  that 
“  no  impure  person  that  worketh  abomination,  or  maketh  a 
lie,  can  enter  within  the  gates  of  the  Heavenly  Jerusalem.” 

The  foundation  of  felicity  in  the  future  state,  is  substan¬ 
tially  the  same  as  that  which  forms  the  basis  of  happiness  in 
the  present  world.  However  elevated  the  station  in  which 
an  individual  may  be  placed,  however  much  wealth  he  may 
possess,  and  however  splendid  his  rank  and  equipage,  he  can 
enjoy  no  substantial  felicity,  while  he  remains  the  slave  of 
grovelling  appetites  and  affections,  and  while  pride  and  envy, 
ambition  and  revenge,  exercise  a  sovereign  control  over  his 
mind.  While  destitute  of  supreme  love  to  God,  and  benevo¬ 
lent  affections  towards  man,  and  of  the  Christian  virtues 
which  flow  from  these  fundamental  principles  df  moral 
action,  the  mind  must  remain  a  stranger  to  true  happiness, 
and  to  all  those  expansive  views,  and  delightful  feelings, 
which  raise  the  soul  above  the  pleasures  of  sense,  and  the 
trivial  vexations  and  disappointments  of  the  present  life. 

These  positions  could  be  demonstrated,  were  it  necessary, 
by  numerous  facts  connected  with  the  moral  scenery  of  hu¬ 
man  society.  Whence  proceeds  that  ennui,  which  is  felt  in 
the  fashionable  world,  in  the  absence  of  balls,  parties,  operas, 
and  theatrical  entertainments?  Whence  arise  those  domrs- 


241 


QUALIFICATIONS  FOR  HEAVEN. 

tic  broils,  those  family  feuds  and  contentions,  which  are  so 
common  in  the  higher,  as  well  as  in  the  lower  ranks  of  life, 
and  which  imbitter  every  enjoyment?  Whence  does  it 
happen,  that,  in  order  to  obtain  gratification,  and  to  render 
existence  tolerable,  so  many  thousands  of  rational  beings 
condescend  to  indulge  in  the  most  childish,  foolish,  and  bru¬ 
tal  diversions  ?  Even  in  the  most  polished  circles  of  society, 
many  who  pride  themselves  on  their  superiority  to  the  vul¬ 
gar  throng,  are  found  deriving  their  chief  gratification,  not 
only  in  scattering  destruction  among  the  brutal  and  the  tea- 
thered  tribes,  but  in  mingling  among  the  motley  rabble  of  a 
cock-pit,  and  in  witnessing  a  couple  of  boxers  encountering 
like  furious  fiends,  and  covering  each  other  with  wounds  and 
gore.  Whence  arise  the  torments  that  are  felt  from  wound¬ 
ed  pride  and  disappointed  ambition  ?  and  how  does  it  happen 
that  social  parties  cannot  enjoy  themselves  for  a  couple  of 
hours,  without  resorting  to  cards  and  dice,  gambling  and  gos- 
sipping,  and  the  circulation  of  tales  of  scandal  ?  How  is  it  to 
be  accounted  for,  that  suicide  is  so  frequently  committed  by 
persons  in  the  higher  circles,  who  are  surrounded  with  lux¬ 
uries  and  splendour ;  and  that  murmuring,  discontentment, 
and  ingratitude,  mark  the  dispositions  and  conduct  of  the 
lower  ranks  of  society  ?  All  these  effects  proceed  from  the 
absence  of  Christian  principles  and  dispositions,  and  from  the 
narrow  range  of  objects  to  which  the  intellectual  powers  are 
confined.  The  man  who  is  actuated  by  Christian  views  and 
affections,  looks  down  with  indifference  and  contempt,  on  the 
degrading  pursuits  to  which  I  have  alluded;  his  soul  aspiies 
after  objects  more  congenial  to  his  rational  and  immortal 
nature  ;  and  in  the  pursuit  of  these,  and  the  exercise  of  the 
virtues  which  religion  inculcates,  he  enjoys  a  refined  plea¬ 
sure  which  the  smiles  of  the  world  cannot  produce,  and 
which  its  frowns  cannot  destroy. 

As  in  the  present  life  there  are  certain  mental  endowments 
necessary  for  securing  substantial  happiness,  so,  there  are 
certain  moral  qualifications  indispensably  requisite  in  order 
to  prepare  us  for  relishing  the  entertainments  and  the  em¬ 
ployments  of  the  life  to  come.  The  foundation  of  future 
felicity  must  be  laid  in  “repentance  towards  God,  and  faith  to¬ 
wards  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.”  We  must  be  convinced  of 
our  sin  and  depravity  as  descendants  of  the  first  Adam,  of 
the  demerit  of  our  offences,  of  the  spotless  purity  and 
eternal  rectitude  of  that  Being  whom  we  have  offended,  and 
of  the  danger  to  which  we  are  exposed  as  the  violators  of 
b  21 


242 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


his  law.  We  must  receive,  with  humility  and  gratitude,  the 
oalvation  exhibited  in  the  Gospel,  and  “  behold,”  with  the 
eye  of  faith,  “  the  Lamb  of  God  who  taketh  away  the  sins  of 
the  world.”  We  must  depend  on  the  aid  of  the  Spirit  of 
God  to  enable  us  to  counteract  the  evil  propensities  of  our 
nature,  to  renew  our  souls  after  the  divine  image,  and  to 
inspire  us  with  ardent  desires  to  abound  in  all  those  “  fruits 
of  righteousness  which  are  to  the  praise  and  glory  of  God.” 
We  must  “  add  to  our  faith,  fortitude  and  resolution,  and  to 
tortitudb,  knowledge,  and  to  knowledge,  temperance,  and  to 
temperance,  patience,  and  to  patience,  godliness,  and  to  god- 
liness,  brotherly  kindness  and  charity.  For,  if  these  things 
be  in  us  and  abound,  they  will  permit  us  to  be  neither  barren 
nor  unfruitful  in  the  knowledge  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  •— 
and  so  an  entrance  shall  be  abundantly  administered  unto’ us 
into  the  everlasting  kingdom  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour.”* 

The  foundation  of  Religion  being  thus  laid  in  the  exercise 
ot  such  Christian  graces,  the  following  dispositions  and  vir¬ 
tues,  among  many  others,  will  be  cherished  and  cultivated 
and  will  form  substantial  qualifications  for  enabling  us  to 
participate  in  “  the  inheritance  of  the  saints  in  light.” 

L  Supreme  Love  to  God,  the  original  source  of  happiness. 
Ihis  is  the  first  duty  of  every  rational  creature,  and  the  most 
sublime  affection  that  can  pervade  the  human  mind.  It 
glows  in  the  breasts  of  angels  and  archangels,  of  cherubim 
and  seraphim,  yea,  there  is  not  an  inhabitant  of  any  world 
m  the  universe  who  has  retained  his  primitive  integrity,  in 
whose  heart  it  does  not  reign  triumphant.  It  unites  all  holy 
intelligences  to  their  Creator  and  to  one  another;  and  con¬ 
sequently,  it  must  qualify  us  for  holding  a  delightful  inter- 
course  with  such  beings,  wherever  they  exist,  and  in  what- 
ever  region  of  the  universe  our  future  residence  may  be 
appointed.  It  enlivens  the  adorations  of  the  angelic  tribes 
when  they  exclaim,  “  Thou  art  worthy,  O  Lordt  to  receive 
glory,  and  honour,  and  thanksgiving,  and  power.”  It  ani¬ 
mates  tnem  in  all  their  celestial  services  ;  it  inspires  them 
with  a  noble  ardour  in  executing  the  commands  of  their 
►Sovereign,  and  it  qualifies  its  possessor,  to  whatever  world 
he  may  belong,  for  co-operating  with  them,  in  carrying  for. 
ward  the  scheme  of  Universal  Benevolence,  towards  the  ac¬ 
complishment  of  which  all  the  arrangements  of  the  Creator 
ultimately  tend. 

*  2  Peter  i.  5]  6,  7,  8, 11.  Doddridge’s  Translation 


LOVE  TO  GOD. 


243 


This  holy  affection  is  congenial  to  every  view  we  can  take 
of  the  character  and  operations  of  the  Deity,  and  its  obliga¬ 
tion  is  deduced  from  the  clearest  principles  of  Reason,  as 
well  as  from  the  dictates  of  Revelation.  It  is  founded  on 
every  attribute  of  the  Divinity,  and  on  every  part  of  his 
physical  and  moral  administration.  His  Omnipotence  is 
every  moment  exerted  in  supporting  the  frame  of  the  uni¬ 
verse,  in  bringing  about  the  alternate  succession  of  day  and 
night,  summer  and  winter,  seed-time  and  harvest,  and  in  di¬ 
recting  the  operation  of  the  elements  of  nature,  in  such  a 
way  as  to  contribute  to  the  happiness  of  man.  His  Wisdom 
and  Intelligence  are  displayed  in  proportionating  and  arran- 
„incr  every  object  in  the  system  of  Nature,  in  such  a  manner 
thar  every  thing  is  preserved  in  order  and  harmony ;  and  in 
organizing  the  bodies  of  men  and  other  creatures,  so  as  to 
prevent  pain,  and  to  produce  a  combination  of  pleasurable 
sensations.  His  Goodness  extends  over  all  his  works,  and 
is  displayed  towards  every  rank  of  sensitive  and  intelligent 
existence.  It  appears  in  the  splendours  of  the  sun,  in  the 
radiance  of  the  moon,  in  the  glories  of  the  starry  firmament* 
in  the  beautiful  assemblage  of  colours  which  diversify  the 
face  of  Nature,  in  the  plants  and  flowers,  which  adorn  the 
fields,  in  the  gentle  zephyrs,  in  the  rains  and  dews  that  fer¬ 
tilize  the  soil,  in  the  provision  made  for  the  sustenance  of  the 
innumerable  beings  that  inhabit  the  air,  the  waters,  and  the 
earth,  and  “  in  filling  the  hearts  of  men  with  food  and  glad¬ 
ness.’’  His  Mercy  and  Forbearance  are  exercised  towards 
all  men,  even  to  the  most  profligate  and  abandoned,  in  sup 
porting  them  in  existence  and  loading  them  with  his  benefits 
even  when  they  are  engaged  in  acts  of  rebellion  against  him 
For  he  commandeth  his  sun  to  arise  on  the  evil  as  well  as  on 
the  good,  and  sendeth  rain  both  on  the  just  and  on  the  unjust. 
He  displays  his  long-suffering,  for  many  years,  towards  the 
thoughtless  prodigal,  and  the  violators  of  his  law,  to  demon¬ 
strate,  that  “  he  desires  not  that  any  should  perish,  but  that 
all  should  come  to  repentance.” 

A  Being  possessed  of  such  attributes,  and  incessantly  dis¬ 
playing  such  beneficence  throughout  creation,  demands  the 
highest  affection  and  veneration  of  all  his  intelligent  offspring, 
so^that  it  is  the  dictate  of  enlightened  reason  as  well  as  o. 
revelation,  “  Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy 
heart,  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy  strength.”  For  it  is 
from  him,  as  the  original  source  of  felicity,  that  all  our  sen¬ 
sitive  and  intellectual  enjoyments  proceed,  and  on  him  we 


244 


TOE  PHILOSOPHY  OP  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


depend  for  all  the  blessings  that  shall  accompany  us  in  every 
future  stage  of  our  existence.  Love  to  God  is,  therefore,  the 
most  reasonable  and  amiable  affection  that  can  glow  in  the 
human  heart,  and  the  spring  of  every  virtuous  action,  and  of 
every  pleasing  and  rapturous  emotion,  if  we  are  possessed 
of  this  divine  principle,  we  shall  delight  in  his  worship,  and 
bow  with  reverence  at  his  footstool;  we  shall  feel  compla- 
cency  in  his  character  and  administration  ;  we  shall  contem- 
plate  with  admiration ,  the  incomprehensible  knowledge,  the 
omnipotent  power,  and  the  boundless  beneficence  displayed 
in  the  mighty  movements  of  Creation  and  Providence ;  we 
shall  feel  the  most  lively  emotions  of  gratitude  for  the  nume¬ 
rous  blessings  he  bestows  ;  we  shall  be  resigned  to  his  will 
under  every  Providential  arrangement,  and  we  shall  lon<r  for 
that  happy  world  where  the  glories  of  his  nature,  and*3  the 

kindness  of  his  love,”  shall  be  more  illustriously  displayed. 
But  the  man  who  is  destitute  of  this  amiable  affection,  is  in¬ 
capable  of  those  sublime  and  rapturous 'emotions  which  ani¬ 
mate  the  minds  of  celestial  intelligences,  and  altogether  un¬ 
qualified  for  mingling  in  their  society.  He  is  a  rebel  against 
the  divine  government,  a  nuisance  in  the  universe  of^God, 
ihe  slave  ot  grovelling  appetites  and  passions,  and,  conse¬ 
quently,  unfit  for  participating  in  the  exercises  and  enjoy, 
ments  of  the  saints  in  glory. 

2.  Love  to  mankind  is  another  affection  which  is  indispens¬ 
ably  requisite  to  qualify  us  for  participating  in  the  joys  of 
heaven.  This  distinguishing  characteristic  of  the  saints  na¬ 
turally  and  necessarily  liows  from  love  to  the  Supreme  Being. 

“  For,  (says  the  apostle  John)  every  one  that  loveth  him  who 
begat,  loveth  them  also  who  are  begotten  of  him.  If  God 
loved  us,  we  ought  also  to  love  one  another.  If  a  man  say, 

I  love  God,  and  hateth  his  brother,  he  is  a  liar  ;  for  he  who 
loveth  not  his  brother  whom  he  hath  seen,  how  can  he  love 
God  whom  he  hath  not  seen  ?”  As  the  spring  flows  from  the 
fountain  and  partakes  of  its  qualities,  and  as  the  shadow  al¬ 
ways  accompanies  the  substance,  and  is  produced  by  it,  so 
love  to  man  uniformly  accompanies  the  love  of  God,  and  is 
produced  by  the  powerful  influence  which  this  governin'*' 
principle  exerts  over  the  mind. 

This  affection  is  accordant  with  the  dictates  of  reason,  and 
congenial  to  the  best  feelings  of  the  human  heart.  YVhen 
we  consider  that  our  fellow-men  derived  their  origin  from  the 
same  Almighty  Being  who  brought  us  into  existence — that 
they  aie  endowed  with  the  same  physical  functions  as  our 


LOVE  TO  MANKIND. 


245 


selves,  and  the  same  moral  and  intellectual  powers — that  they 
relish  the  same  pleasures  and  enjoyments,  possess  the  same 
feelings,  and  are  subjected  to  the  same  wants  and  afflictions — 
that  they  are  involved  in  the  same  general  depravity,  and  lia¬ 
ble  to  the  same  temptations  and  disasters — that  they  are  jour¬ 
neying  along  with  us  to  the  tomb,  and  that  our  dust  must  soon 
mingle  with  theirs — when  we  consider  the  numerous  rela¬ 
tions  in  which  we  stand  to  our  brethren  around  us,  and  to  all 
the  inhabitants  of  the  globe — our  dependence  upon  all  ranks 
and  descriptions  of  men,  and  upon  almost  every  nation  un¬ 
der  heaven  for  our  sensitive  and  intellectual  enjoyments — 
and  that  thousands  of  them  are  traversing  sea  and  land,  and 
exposing  themselves  to  innumerable  dangers,  in  order  to  sup¬ 
ply  us  with  the  comforts  and  the  luxuries  of  life — when  we 
consider,  that  they  are  all  destined  to  an  immortal  existence, 
and  shall  survive  the  dissolution  of  this  globe,  and  bear  a  part 
in  the  solemn  scenes  which  shall  open  to  view  when  time 
shall  be  no  more — in  short,  when  we  consider,  that  the  great 
Father  of  all,  without  respect  of  persons,  makes  the  same 
vital  air  to  give  play  to  their  lungs,  the  same  water  to  cleanse 
and  refresh  them,  the  same  rains  and  dews  to  fructify  their 
fields,  the  same  sun  to  enlighten  their  day,  and  the  same 
moon  to  cheer  the  darkness  of  their  night — we  must  be  con 
vinced,  that  love  to  our  brethren  of  mankind  is  the  law  of 
the  Creator,  and  the  most  rational  and  amiable  affection  that 
can  animate  the  human  heart  in  relation  to  subordinate  intel¬ 
ligences.  He  who  is  destitute  of  this  affection  is  a  pest  in 
society,  a  rebel  and  a  nuisance  in  the  kingdom  of  God,  and, 
of  course,  unqualified  for  the  enjoyment  of  celestial  bliss. — 
“  For  he  who  hateth  his  brother  is  a  murderer ;  and  we  know 
that  no  murderer  hath  eternal  life  abiding  in  him.”* 

But,  our  love  is  not  to  be  confined  to  our  brethren  of  tne 
race  of  Adam.  It  must  take  a  loftier  flight,  and  comprehend 
within  its  expansive  grasp,  all  the  holy  intelligences  in  the 
universe,  in  so  far  as  their  nature  and  qualities  have  been 
made  known  to  us.  We  must  love  the  angelic  tribes.  They 
are  beings  who  stand  near  the  summit  of  the  scale  of  intel¬ 
lectual  existence  ;  they  are  endowed  with  faculties  superior 
to  man  ;  they  dwell  in  the  glorious  presence  of  God,  and  are 
employed  as  his  ministers  in  superintending  the  affairs  of  his 
government.  They  are  possessed  of  wonderful  activity,  in¬ 
vested  with  powers  of  rapid  motion,  and  flourish  in  immortal 

*  1  John  iii  15. 

21* 


246 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


jouth.  They  are  adorned  with  consummate  holiness  and 
rectitude,  and  with  peculiar  loveliness  of  character.  Pride 
and  vanity,  envy  and  malice,  wrath  and  revenge,  never  ran- 
kle  in  their  breasts.  -I hey  never  indulge  in  impiety,  never 
insult  the  Redeemer,  nor  bring  a  railing  accusation  against 
their  brethren.  They  glow  with  an  intense  and  immortal 
name  ot  love  to  their  Creator ;  they  are  incessantly  employ 
ed  in  acts  of  benevolence  ;  they  occasionally  descend  to  our 
world  on  embassies  of  mercy,  and  are  ministering  spirits  to 
the  heirs  of  salvation.  On  all  these  accounts  they  demand 
our  esteem,  our  approbation,  and  our  affectionate  regard. 
And,  although  they  are  at  present  placed  beyond  the  reach 
of  our  beneficence,  and  we  have  no  opportunity  of  express- 
ing  our  benevolent  wishes,  yet  we  may  afterward  be  joined 
to  their  society,  and  co-operate  with  them  in  their  labours  or 
love. 

Phe  indispensable  necessity  of  love  to  mankind,  and  to 
every  class  of  holy  intelligences,  as  a  preparation  for  heaven, 
will  appear  when  we  consider,  that  we  shall  mingle  in  their 
society,  and  hold  intimate  fellowship  with  them  in  the  eter¬ 
nal  world.  For  the  inhabitants  of  our  world  who  are  admit¬ 
ted  into  heaven,  are  represented  in  Scripture,  as  joining  “the 
general  assembly  and  church  of  the  first  born,  the  spirits  of 
just  men  made  perfect,  and  the  innumerable  company  of 
angels  and  hence  they  are  exhibited,  in  the  book  of  Reve¬ 
lation,  as  joining  with  one  heart  and  one  mind  in  contemplat¬ 
ing  the  divine  operations,  and  in  celebrating  the  praises  of 
their  common  Lord.  In  the  society  of  that  blessed  world, 
love  pervades  every  bosom,  it  reigns  for  ever  triumphant ; 
and  therefore,  every  exercise  and  intercourse  is  conducted 
with  affection,  harmony,  and  peace.  Among  the  other  evils 
vvlvch  shall  be  banished  from  the  New  Jerusalem,  it  is  de- 
c’.ared  in  the  book  of  Revelation,  that  “there  shall  be  no 
more  crying ,  or,  as  the  word  should  be  rendered,  “there 
shall  be  no  more  clamour,  broils,  or  contentions,”  arising  from 
the  operation  of  malignant  principles.  No  jarring  affection 
is  ever  felt,  no  malevolent  wish  is  ever  uttered,  and  no  discor¬ 
dant  voice  is  ever  heard,  among  all  the  myriads  of  those 
exalted  intelligences.  Kindness  and  benignity,  expansive 
benevolence,  condescension  and  humility,  are  the  character¬ 
istics  of  all  the  inhabitants  of  heaven.  Without  these  qua¬ 
lities  the  celestial  world  would  become  a  scene  of  eternal 
confusion,  and  happiness  would  be  banished  from  its  abodes. 

Il,  therefore,  we  would  be  qualified  to  associate  with  those 


HUMILITY. 


247 


glorious  beings,  and  to  participate  in  their  enjoyments,  we 
must  cultivate  the  same  virtues,  and  be  animated  by  similar 
dispositions,  otherwise,  we  could  experience  no  delight  in 
the  society  of  angels,  and  “  spirits  of  the  just  made  perfect. 
Were  an  individual  whose  heart  is  full  of  rancour  and  envy, 
who  delights  in  broils  and  contentions,  and  in  the  exercise  of 
revenge,  to  be  admitted  into  that  society,  he  would  find  no 
associates  actuated  by  congenial  feelings,  he  would  disturb 
the  harmony  of  the  celestial  choir,  and  would  be  instantly 
expelled,  with  every  mark  of  indignation  and  horror,  from 
those  blessed  abodes.  “  For  what  fellowship  hath  righteous, 
ness  with  unrighteousness?  what  communion  hath  light  with 
darkness?  and  what  concord  hath  Christ  with  Belial  ?”  By 
a  law  which  pervades  the  whole  moral  universe  wherever  it 
extends,  which  can  never  be  rescinded,  and  which,  like  the 
law  of  gravitation  in  the  material  world,  connects  all  the 
individuals  of  which  it  is  composed  in  one  harmonious 
system  ; — such  characters  must,  ot  necessity,  be  for  ever  ex¬ 
cluded  from  the  mansions  of  the  blessed.  On  the  otner 
hand,  the  man  whose  heart  glows  with  love  to  his  Creator, 
and  with  expansive  affection  to  mankind,  and  towards  all 
holy  beings,  is  secured  of  eternal  happiness,  as  the  neces¬ 
sary  result  of  the  possession  of  such  divine  principles;  and 
must  enjoy  felicity,  while  such  principles  remain  in  exercise, 
during  all  the  future  periods  of  his  existence,  and  in  every 
region  of  the  universe  to  which  he  may  be  transported. 

3.  Humility  is  another  essential  qualification  for  enjoying 
the  felicity  of  the  future  world.  There  is  nothing  that  ap¬ 
pears  more  prominent  in  the  character  of  the  bulk  of  mankind, 
than  pride,  which  displays  itself  in  a  thousand  different 
modes  in  the  intercourses  of  society.  It  is  uniformly  accom¬ 
panied  with  haughtiness  of  demeanour,  self-conceit,  obsti¬ 
nacy,  arrogance,  and  a  whole  train  of  malignant  passions 
and  affections.  It  is  the  pest  of  general  society,  the  source 
of  domestic  broils  and  contentions,  and  the  greatest  curse 
that  can  fall  on  a  Christian  church,  when  it  insinuates  itself 
into  the  minds  of  those  who  “  love  to  have  the  pre-eminence.” 

It  is  a  source  of  torment  to  its  possessor,  and  to  all  around 
him  ;  and  of  all  the  malignant  passions  which  rankle  in  the 
human  breast,  it  is  the  most  inconsistent  with  the  present  A 
character  and  condition  of  man.  It  is  peculiar  to  fallen  and 
depraved  intelligences,  for  it  is  certain,  from  the  very  consti¬ 
tution  of  the  moral  system,  that  no  emotions  of  pride  or 
haughtiness  are  ever  felt  in  the  breasts  angels,  or  any  other 


248 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


holy  beings  ;  because  such  affections  are  incompatible  with 
the  principle  of  love  to  God  and  to  our  fellow-creatures. 

In  opposition  to  this  principle,  which  predominates  in  the 
minds  of  a  fallen  men,  and  apostate  angels,— humility  is  a 
distinguishing  characteristic  of  the  sons  of  God,  whether  on 
earth  or  in  heaven.  Hence,  we  are  told  that  «  God  resisteth 
the  proud,  but  giveth  grace  to  the  humble,”— that  “  even  a 
proud  look  is  an  abomination  in  his  sight,”  while  he  beholds 
v\ith  complacency  “  the  humble  and  the  contrite  spirit.” 
Hence,  we  are  exhorted  “  to  clothe  ourselves  with  humility 
and  “  to  forbear  one  another  in  all  lowliness  and  meekness  of 
mind,  and  to  esteem  others  better  than  ourselves.”  Humility 
consists  in  a  just  sense  of  our  character  and  condition,  both 
as  dependent  beings  and  as  apostate  creatures,  accompanied 
with  a  correspondent  train  of  dispositions  and  affections. 
However  much  this  disposition  has  been  disrelished  by  Hume 
and  other  infidels,  who  oonsider  it  as  both  vicious  and  con¬ 
temptible,— when  viewed  in  its  true  light,  it  appears  conge- 
mal  to  the  best  feelings  of  our  nature,  and  to  the  plainest 
deductions  of  reason. — When  we  consider  our  condition  as 
creatures,  dependent  every  moment  on  a  Superior  Being  “  for 
life,  and  breath,  and  all  things,” — when  we  reflect  on  the 
curious  organization  of  our  corporeal  frame,  the  thousands 
of  veins,  arteries,  muscles,  bones,  lacteals,  and  lymphatics, 
which  are  interwoven  through  its  constitution;  the  inces-’ 
sant  pulsation  of  the  heart  in  the  centre  of  the  system,  and 
the  numerous  other  functions  and  movements  over  which  we 
have  no  control.  When  we  reflect  on  our  character  as  guilty 
and  depraved  creatures,  in  the  presence  of  Him  “  who  is  of 
purer  eyes  than  to  behold  iniquity  ;”  and  on  the  numerous 
diseases,  pains,  sorrows,  and  physical  evils  from  the  war  of 
the  elements,  to  which  we  are  subjected, — when  we  consider, 
that,  ere  long,  our  bodies  must  crumble  into  dust,  and  become 
the  prey  of  noisome  reptiles ;— when  we  reflect  on  the  low 
station  m  which  we  are  placed  in  the  scale  of  intelligent  exist - 
ence— that  we  are  only  like  so  many  atoms,  or  microscopic 
ammalcuke,  when  contrasted  with  the  innumerable  myriads 
of  bright  intelligences  that  people  the  empire  of  God— and 
that  the  globe  on  which  we  dwell  is  but  as  “  the  drop  of  a 
bucket,”  when  compared  with  the  millions  of  more  resplen- 

dent  worlds  that  roll  through  the  vast  spaces  of  creation  ; _ 

and,  in  short,  when  we  consider  the  grandeur  of  that  Omni¬ 
potent  Being  whose  presence  pervades  every  region  of  im¬ 
mensity,  and  in  whose  sight  “  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  world, 


HUMILITY  OF  THE  ANGELS. 


340 


are  as  grasshoppers,  and  are  counted  to  him  as  less  than 
nothing  and  vanity,” — there  is  no  disposition  that  appears 
more  conformable  to  the  character  and  condition  of  man, 
than  “  lowliness  of  mind,”  and  none  more  unreasonable  and 
inconsistent  with  the  rank  and  circumstances  in  which  he  is 
placed,  than  pride,  haughtiness,  and  arrogance. 

This  amiable  disposition  forms  a  peculiar  trait  in  the  cha¬ 
racter  of  angels  and  other  pure  intelligences.  It  is  poor, 
puny,  sinful  man,  alone,  who  dares  to  be  proud  and  arrogant. 
It  is  that  rebellious  worm  of  the  dust  alone ,  (if  we  except  the 
angels  of  darkness,)  that  looks  down  with  supercilious  con¬ 
tempt  on  his  fellow-creatures,  and  attempts  to  exalt  himself 
above  the  throne  of  God.  No  such  affections  are  ever  felt 
in  the  breasts  of  superior  beings  who  have  kept  their  first 
estate.  In  proportion  to  the  enlarged  capacity  of  their 
minds  ;  in  proportion  to  the  expansive  views  they  have  ac¬ 
quired  of  the  dominions  of  Jehovah,  in  proportion  to  the  ele¬ 
vated  conceptions  they  have  attained  of  the  character  and 
attributes  of  their  Creator,  in  a  similar  proportion  are  their 
m-inds  inspired  with  humility ,  reverence,  and  lowly  adoration. 
Having  taken  an  extensive  survey  of  the  operations  of  Om¬ 
nipotence,  having  winged  their  way  to  numerous  worlds,  and 
beheld  scenes  of  wisdom  and  benevolence,  which  the  eye  of 
man  hath  not  yet  seen,  nor  his  imagination  conceived,  and 
having  contemplated  displays  of  intelligence  and  power, 
which  are  beyond  the  reach  even  of  their  own  superior  facul¬ 
ties  to  comprehend — they  see  themselves  as  finite  and  im¬ 
perfect  creatures,  and  even  as  it  were  fools*  in  the  presence 
of  Him  whose  glory  is  ineffable,  and  whose  ways  are  past 
finding  out. — Hence,  they  are  represented  as  “  covering 
their  faces  with  their  wings,”  in  the  presence  of  their  Sove¬ 
reign  ;f  and,  in  the  Book  of  Revelation,  they  are  exhibited 
as  casting  their  crowns  before  the  throne,  and  saying,  “Thou 
art  worthy,  O  Lord,  to  receive  glory,  and  honour,  and 
power.”:):  What  a  striking  contrast  does  such  a  scene  pre¬ 
sent  to  the  haughty  airs,  and  the  arrogant  conduct  of  the 
proud  beings  that  dwell  on  this  terrestrial  ball,  who  are  at 
the  same  time  immersed  in  ignorance  and  folly,  immorality 
and  crime ! 

*  In  the  book  of  Job,  Elipbaz,  when  describing  the  perfections  of  the 
Almighty,  declares,  that  “  the  heavens  are  not  clean  in  his  sight,’’  and  that 
even  “his  angels  he  chargeth  with  folly."  Job  iv.  18.  xv.  15. 

t  Isaiah  vi.  2.  t  Rev.  iv.  10,  1 1 


250 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


In  their  intercourses  with  the  inhabitants  of  our  world, 
and  the  offices  they  perform  as  ministering  spirits  to  the  heirs 
of  salvation,  the  same  humble  and  condescending  demeanor 
is  displayed.  One  of  the  highest  order  of  these  celestial 
messengers — “  Gabriel,  who  stands  in  the  presence  of  God,” 
— winged  his  flight  from  his  heavenly  mansion  to  our  wretched 
world,  and,  directing  his  course  to  one  of  the  most  despica¬ 
ble  villages  of  Galilee,  entered  into  the  hovel  of  a  poor  virgin, 
and  delivered  a  message  of  joy,  with  the  most  affectionate 
and  condescending  congratulations.  Another  of  these  bene¬ 
volent  beings  entered  the  dungeon  in  which  Peter  was  bound 
with  chains,  knocked  off  his  fetters,  and  addressed  him  in 
the  language  of  kindness,  and  delivered  him  from  the  hands 
of  his  future  persecutors.  When  Paul  was  tossing  in  a 
storm,  on  the  billows  of  the  Adriatic,  a  forlorn  exile  from  his 
native  land,  and  a  poor  despised  prisoner,  on  whom  the 
grandees  of  this  world  looked  down  with  contempt, — another 
of  these  angelic  beings,  “  stood  by  him,”  during  the  dark-  j 
ness  of  the  night  and  the  war  of  the  elements,  and  consoled 
his  mind  with  the  assurance  of  the  Divine  favour  and  pro¬ 
tection.  Lazarus  was  a  poor  despised  individual,  in  abject 
poverty  and  distress,  and  dependent  on  charity  for  his  sub-  j 
sistence.  He  lay  at  the  gate  of  a  rich  man,  without  friends  or 
attendants,  desiring  to  be  fed  with  the  crumbs  which  fell  from 
his  table.  His  body  was  covered  with  biles  and  ulcers, 
which  were  exposed  without  covering  to  the  open  air ;  for 
‘  the  dogs  came  and  licked  his  sores.”  What  nobleman  or 
grandee  would  have  condescended  to  make  a  companion  of 
a  fellow-creature  in  such  loathsome  and  abject  circumstances  ? 
Who,  even  of  the  common  people,  would  have  received  such 
a  person  into  their  houses,  or  desired  his  friendship?  Who 
would  have  accounted  it  an  honour,  when  he  died,  to  attend 
his  funeral  ?  Celestial  beings,  however,  view  the  circum-  j 
stances  and  the  characters  of  men  in  a  very  different  light, 
from  that  in  which  they  appear  to  “  the  children  of  pride.” 
Poor  and  despised  as  Lazarus  was,  a  choir  of  angels  de¬ 
scended  from  their  mansions  of  glory,  attended  him  on  his 
dying  couch,  and  wafted  his  disembodied  spirit  to  the  realms 
of  bliss. 

Since,  then,  it  appears,  that  angelic  beings,  notwithstand¬ 
ing  their  exalted  stations,  and  the  superior  glories  of  their 
character,  are  “  clothed  with  humility,” — it  must  form  a 
a  distinguishing  trait  in  our  moral  characters,  if  we  expect 
to  be  admitted  into  their  society  in  the  world  to  come.  For 


FOLLY  OF  PRIDE. 


251 


now  could  we  enter  into  harmonious  fellowship  with  these 
pure  intelligences,  if  we  were  actuated  with  dispositions 
diametrically  opposite  to  theirs,  and  what  happiness  would 
result  from  such  an  association,  were  it  possible  to  be  effect¬ 
ed]  A  proud  man,  were  he  admitted  into  heaven,  could 
feel  no  permanent  enjoyment.  The  external  glory  of  the 
place  might  dazzle  his  eyes  for  a  little,  but  he  would  feel  no 
relish  for  the  society  and  the  employments  of  that  world. 
The  peculiar  honour  conferred  on  patriarchs,  prophets,  and 
apostles,  and  the  noble  army  of  martyrs,  and  the  exalted 
stations  of  the  cherubim  and  seraphim,  would  excite  his  envy 
and  ambition,  and,  ere  long,  he  would  attempt  to  sow  the 
seeds  of  discord,  and  to  introduce  anarchy  and  confusion 
among  the  hosts  of  heaven.  So  that  the  passion  of  pride, 
when  cherished  in  the  soul  as  the  governing  principle  of 
action,  is  utterly  incompatible  with  our  admission  into  the 
regions  of  harmony  and  love. 

Let  me  ask  the  man  in  whose  heart  pride  and  haughtiness 
predominate,  if  he  really  imagines  that  he  can  be  a  candidate 
for  a  glorious  and  immortal  existence  7  Does  he  not  at  once 
perceive  the  inconsistency  of  such  a  thought  with  the  dictates 
of  reason,  and  the  nature  of  future  felicity] — Of  what  has  he 
any  reason  to  be  proud  ]  Is  he  proud  of  his  birth  1  of  his 
ancestors?  of  his  wealth?  of  his  station?  of  his  beauty?  of  his 
personal  accomplishments?  of  his  gallantry?  of  his  debauch¬ 
eries  ?  of  his  military  prowess?  or  of  the  thousands  of  human 
beings  he  has  slain  in  battle  ?  Is  he  proud  of  his  skill  in 
music,  in  dancing,  in  fencing,  in  fox-hunting,  and  in  gam¬ 
bling  ]  of  his  knowledge  in  languages,  in  literature,  in  arts 
and  sciences  ]  Or  is  he  proud  that  he  is  subject,  to  the 
asthma,  the  gravel,  the  dropsy,  and  the  gout,  that  his  funeral 
will  be  attended  by  a  train  of  mourners,  and  that  a  monu¬ 
ment  of  marble  will  be  erected  to  his  memory,  when  his 
carcass  is  putrifying  with  the  reptiles  of  the  dust]  Suppose 
he  were  admitted  into  the  celestial  mansions — which  of  all 
-hese  topics  would  he  choose  for  the  theme  of  his  conversa¬ 
tion,  and  the  ground  of  his  boasting  1  Would  he  attempt  to 
entertain  the  cherubim  and  the  seraphim,  by  telling  them 
how  many  rude  chieftains  he  was  descended  from,  how  many 
ancient  families  he  was  connected  with,  and  how  many 
acres  of  land  he  possessed  as  a  patrimony  in  that  wretched 
world  which  is  soon  to  be  wrapt  in  flames]  Would  he  tell 
them  of  his  expertness  as  a  marksman,  of  his  dexterity  as  a 
horse-racer,  of  his  adroitness  as  a  boxer,  o.  his  skill  in  ma- 


252 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


noeuvering  an  army,  of  the  villages  he  had  burned,  of  the 
thousands  he  had  pillaged,  or  of  the  thousands  he  had  butch- 
ered  in  storming  a  city? — He  would  be  overwhelmed  with 
shouts  of  indignation,  and  instantly  hissed  from  their  abodes. 
Would  he  boast  of  his  skill  in  languages  and  antiquities,  or 
of  his  knowledge  in  arts  and  sciences?  What  a  poor  ignora¬ 
mus,  (if  I  may  use  the  expression)  would  he  appear  in  the 
presence  of  Gabriel,  the  angel  of  God,  who  has  so  frequently 
winged  his  way,  in  a  few  hours,  from  heaven  to  earth,  and 
surveyed  the  regions  of  unnumbered  worlds  !  Would  a  poor 
worm  of  the  earth,  whose  view  is  confined  within  a  few  miles 
around  it,  boast  of  its  knowledge  in  the  presence  of  beings 
endowed  with  such  capacious  powers,  and  who  have  ranged 
over  so  vast  a  portion  of  the  universe  of  God  ?  And,  if  he  has 
nothing  else  to  boast  of,  why  is  he  proud  ?  What  a  pitiful 
figure  he  would  make  among  the  intelligent  and  adoring  hosts 
of  heaven  ?  While  such  a  disposition,  therefore,  predominates 
in  the  mind,  its  possessor  can  enjoy  no  substantial  felicity  ei¬ 
ther  in  this  life  or  in  the  life  to  come. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  man  who,  like  the  Redeemer,  is 
“  meek  and  lowly  in  heart,”  has  “  the  witness  in  himself,” 
that  he  has  obtained  the  approbation  of  his  God,  that  he  is 
assimilated  to  angelic  beings  in  his  temper  and  affections, 
that  he  has  the  principle  of  eternal  life  implanted  in  his  soul, 
and  that  he  is  in  some  measure  qualified  for  joining  in  the 
exercises,  and  enjoying  the  felicity  of  the  heavenly  state. — 
“For  thus  saith  the  High  and  Lofty  One  that  inhabiteth  eter¬ 
nity,  whose  name  is  Holy  ;  I  dwell  in  the  high  and  holy  place 
— with  him  also  that  is  of  a  contrite  and  humble  spirit,  to  re¬ 
vive  the  spirit  of  the  humble,  and  to  revive  the  heart  of  the 
contrite  ones.” 

4.  Active  Beneficence,  with  all  its  accompanying  virtues,  is 
another  characteristic  of  the  man  who  is  training  for  the 
heavenly  inheritance.  Wherever  the  principle  of  love  to 
God  and  man,  and  the  grace  of  humility  are  in  exercise, 
they  will  uniformly  lead  the  individual  who  is  under  their  in¬ 
fluence  to  “  abound  in  the  fruits  of  righteousness,  and  to  use 
every  active  endeavour  to  promote  the  comfort  and  happiness 
of  mankind.  He  will  endeavour,  as  far  as  his  power  and  in¬ 
fluence  extend,  to  relieve  the  wants  of  the  poor,  the  father- 
less,  and  the  widow,  to  sooth  the  disconsolate,  to  comfort  the 
afflicted,  to  shelter  the  houseless  and  benighted  traveller, 
to  instruct  the  ignorant,  and  to  meliorate  the  moral  and  phy¬ 
sical  condition  of  every  rank  of  society.  He  will  patronize 


ACTIVE  lir.M'.rM T.MT.. 


253 


every  scheme  which  has  for  its  object  to  remove  the  evils 
which  exist  in  the  social  state— to  increase  the  comforts  ol 
mankind— to  improve  the  soil— to  facilitate  human  labour— 
to  clear  away  nuisances  from  the  habitations  of  men  to 
promote  order,  cleanliness,  and  domestic  enjoyment— to  train 
the  minds  of  the  young  to  knowledge  and  virtue— to  intro¬ 
duce  improvements  in  the  mechanical  arts,  and  to  difiusc  use¬ 
ful  science  among  all  ranks.  Above  all  things  he  will  en- 
dcavour,  in  so  far  as  his  station  and  opportunities  permit,  to 
promote  the  spiritual  improvement  and  the  eternal  happiness 
of  mankind,  and  will  study  to  render  all  his  other  exertions 
subservient  to  this  most  interesting  and  momentous  object 
In  contributing  to  the  accomplishment  of  this  end,  he  will 
•rive  his  countenance  and  support  to  every  institution,  and  to 
every  rational  scheme  which  is  calculated  to  promote  the 
knowledge  of  the  Scriptures  of  truth  throughout  our  own 
country,' “and  in  other  lands,  and  to  make  known  “the  salva¬ 
tion  of  God”  over  all  the  earth.— In  such  benevolent  exer¬ 
tions  he  will  persevere,  even  in  the  face  of  every  species  ot 
opposition,  obloquy,  and  reproach,  through  the  whole  course 
of  his  existence  in  this  world,  till  death  transport  him  to  a 
nobler  sphere  of  action  and  enjoyment.  . 

The  necessity  of  acquiring  habits  of  active  beneficence, 
in  order  to  our  preparation  for  the  felicity  of  the  future  woild, 
will  appear,  if  we  consider,  that  heaven  is  a  social  slate,  and 
that  a  considerable  portion  of  its  happiness  will  consist  in  the 
mutual  interchange  of  benevolent  affections,  and  beneficent 
actions.  There  will,  indeed,  be  no  poor  and  distressed  ob- 
jects  to  be  relieved  and  comforted,  no  sorrows  to  be  allevia¬ 
ted,  and  no  physical  nor  moral  evils  to  be  counteracted;  for, 
in  the  New  Jerusalem  “  there  shall  be  no  more  death,  neither 
sorrow  nor  crying,  neither  shall  there  be  any  more  pain,  for 
the  former  things  shall  have  passed  away,  and  God  shall  wipe 
away  all  tears  from  their  eyes.”  But  its  inhabitants  will  be 
for  ever  employed  in  acts  of  beneficence  towards  each  other, 
corresponding  to  their  dignified  stations,  and  the  circumstances 
in  which  they  are  placed.  This  is  evident  from  the  very  na¬ 
ture  of  Love,  which  pervades  the  hearts  of  the  whole  of  that 
“  multitude  which  no  man  can  number.”  Love  can  be  ma¬ 
nifested  only  by  its  effects,  or  by  those  external  acts  of  kind¬ 
ness  and  benignity  which  tend  to  communicate  happiness  to 
others  ;  and,  there  can  be  no  doubt,  that,  in  a  thousand  ways 
incomprehensible  to  us,  the  inhabitants  of  the  upper  world 
will  be  the  means  of  diffusing  ecstatic  delight  through  the 

22 


254 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


bosoms  of  surrounding  intelligences,  which  will  form  a  pait 
ot  that  joy  which  is  “  unspeakable  and  full  of  glory.”  The 
sympathetic  feelings  they  will  express  for  each  other,  both 
m  respect  to  their  former  and  their  present  condition,  the  in¬ 
terest  they  will  take  in  listening  to  each  other’s  history,  the 
scenes  of  felicity  to  which  they  will  conduct  each  other,  the 
noble  and  enrapturing  subjects  of  conversation  with  which 
they  will  entertain  one  another,  the  objects  of  beauty  and 
sublimity  to  which  they  will  direct  each  other’s  attention,  the 
lectures  on  divine  subjects,  which  the  more  capacious  and 
exalted  spirits  among  them  may  deliver  to  their  younger  bre¬ 
thren  of  “  the  church  of  the  first-born,”  and  the  intelliaence 
from  distant  worlds  which  fne  seraphim  may  communicate 

on  returning  from  their  embassies  of  love  to  other  regions _ 

may  form  a  part  of  those  beneficent  services,  into  which  every 
inhabitant  of  that  world  wdll  engage  with  peculiar  pleasure, 
lo  communicate  happiness  in  every  possible  mode,  to  make 
surrounding  associates  exult  with  joy,  and  to  stimulate  them 
to  celebrate  the  praises  of  the  “  Giver  of  all  Good,”  will  be 
their  unceasing  desire  and  their  everlasting  delight. 

We  have  every  reason  to  believe,  that  a  vast  system  of 
universal  Benevolence  is  going  on  throughout  the  universe  of 
God,  and  that  it  is  the  grand  object  of  his  moral  government 
to  distribute  happiness  among  unnumbered  world's.  In  pro¬ 
secuting  this  object,  he  employs  created  intelligences,  as  his 
ministers  in  accomplishing  his  designs,  and  for  communicating 
enjoyment  to  each  other.  With  respect  to  the  angels,  we 
are  informed  by  Paul,  that  “they  are  all  ministering  spirits 
sent  forth  to  minister  to  them  who  shall  be  heirs  of  salvation.” 
Hence  we  learn  from  sacred  history,  that  they  delivered 
Peter  from  the  fury  of  Herod  and  the  Jewish  rulers, — Daniel 
from  the  ravenous  lions — Lot  from  the  destruction  of  Sodom, 
and  Jacob  fronUhe  hands  of  Esau  ;  that  they  strengthened 
and  refreshed  Elijah  in  the  wilderness,  comforted  Daniel 
when  covered  with  sackcloth  and  ashes,  directed  Joseph  and 
Mary  in  their  journey  to  Egypt,  and  Cornelius  to  Peter,  to 
receive  the  knowledge  of  salvation  ;  that  they  communicated 
“  good  tidings  of  great  joy”  to  Zacharias  the  father  of  John 
the  Baptist,  to  the  \irgin  Mary,  and  to  the  shepherds  in  the 
plains  of  Bethlehem,  and  consoled  the  hearts  of  the  discon- 
solate  disciples,  by  proclaiming  the  resurrection  of  their  Lord 
and  Master ; — and  we  have  reason  to  conclude,  that  such  mi¬ 
nistrations,  are  appointed  to  be  continued  throughout  all  the 
periods  of  time 


MINISTRY  OF  ANGEL9. 


255 


It  is  not  improbable  that  the  spirits  of  just  men  made  per¬ 
fect,  are  likewise  occasionally  employed  in  similar  services. 
When  the  vision  of  the  New  Jerusalem  was  exhibited  to  John 
by  a  celestial  messenger,  he  “  fell  down  to  worship  before  the 
feet  of  the  messenger  who  showed  him  these  things.  But 
the  messenger  forbade  him,  saying, — “  See  thou  do  it  not ;  for 
lam  thy  fellow-servant,  and  of  thy  brethren  the  prophets ,  and 
of  them  that  keep  (or  are  interested  in)  the  sayings  of  this 
book.”  These  words  would  naturally  lead  us  to  conclude, 
that  this  messenger  was  a  departed  saint,  since  he  designates 
himself  a  brother ,  a  prophet,  and  a  fellow-servant.  Perhaps 
it  was  the  spirit  of  Moses,  of  David,  of  Isaiah,  of  Jeremiah, 
or  of  Daniel,  who  would  account  it  an  honour  to  be  employed 
in  such  a  service  by  their  exalted  Lord.  But  whether  or  not 
such  a  supposition  may  be  admitted,  certain  it  is,  that  the 
saints  will  hereafter  be  employed  in  active  beneficent  services, 
in  concert  with  other  holy  beings,  so  long  as  their  existence 
endures.  For  they  are  constituted  “Kings  and  Priests  to 
the  God  and  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,”  and  are 
“  workers  together  with  God,”  in  carrying  forward  the  plans 
of  his  government. 

Since,  then,  it  appears,  that  the  inhabitants  of  heaven  are 
incessantly  employed  in  acts  of  beneficence,  the  habit  of  be¬ 
neficence  which  is  acquired  in  this  world,  along  with  its  ac¬ 
companying  virtues,  may  be  considered  as  a  preparation  and 
a  qualification  for  that  more  extensive  sphere  of  moral  action 
into  which  the  saints  shall  be  introduced,  when  they  wing 
their  way  from  this  earthly  ball  to  the  regions  above.  And, 
consequently,  those  who  never  engage  in  “works  of  faith 
and  labours  of  love,”  and  who  are  governed  by  a  principle  of 
selfishness  in  the  general  tenor  of  their  conduct,  must  be  con¬ 
sidered  as  unqualified  for  taking  a  part  in  the  benevolent  em¬ 
ployments  of  the  celestial  world.* 

Let  us  now  consider  for  a  little,  the  happiness  which  must 
flow  from  an  association  with  intelligent  beings,  animated  with 
the  sublime  principles  and  holy  dispositions  to  which  I  have 
now  adverted. 

*  This  subject  might  have  been  illustrated  at  greater  length ;  but  as  the 
Author  has  already  had  occasion  to  enter  in/o  a  minute  discussion  of  the 
principles  of  moral  action,  and  their  relation  to  the  inhabitants  of  all 
worlds,  in  his  work  on  “The  Philosophy  of  Religion,” — he  refers  his 
readers  to  that  treatise,  for  a  more  ample  elucidation  of  the  several  topics, 
to  which  he  has  briefly  adverted  in  the  preceding  pages — particularly  to 
Chap.  I.  throughout,  Chap.  II.  Section  3,  4,  5,  6,  8.  and  the  General  Con¬ 
clusions,  pp.  G34 — G38 


256 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FtJTI'KK  STAT 


In  the  present  world,  one  of  the  principal  sources  of  mi¬ 
sery,  arises  from  the  malevolent  dispositions,  and  immoral 
conduct  of  its  inhabitants.  Pride,  ambition,  malignant  pas- 
sions,  falsehood,  deceit,  envy,  and  revenge,  which  exercise  a 
sovereign  sway  over  the  hearts  of  the  majority  of  mankind — 
have  produced  more  misery  and  devastation  among  the  hu¬ 
man  race,  than  the  hurricane  and  the  tempest,  the  earthquake 
and  the  volcano,  and  all  the  other  concussions  of  the  ele¬ 
ments  of  nature.  The  lust  of  ambition  has  covered  king¬ 
doms  with  sackcloth  and  ashes,  levelled  cities  with  the  ground, 
turned  villages  into  heaps  of  smoking  ruins,  transformed  fer¬ 
tile  fields  into  a  wilderness,  polluted  the  earth  with  human 
gore,  slaughtered  thousands  and  millions  of  human  beings, 
and  filled  the  once  cheerful  abodes  of  domestic  life  with  the 
sounds  of  weeping,  lamentation,  and  wo.  Injustice  and  vio¬ 
lence  have  robbed  society  of  its  rights  and  privileges,  and 
the  widow  and  fatherless  of  their  dearest  enjoyments.  Su¬ 
perstition  and  revenge  have  immolated  their  millions  of  vic¬ 
tims,  banished  peace  from  the  wTorld,  and  subverted  the  order 
of  society.  The  violation  of  truth  in  contracts,  affirmations, 
and  promises,  has  involved  nations  in  destruction,  undermined 
the  foundations  of  public  prosperity,  blasted  the  good  name 
and  the  comfort  of  families,  perplexed  and  agitated  the 
minds  of  thousands  and  millions,  and  thrown  contempt  on 
the  revelation  of  heaven,  and  the  discoveries  of  science. 
Malice,  envy,  hatred,  and  similar  affections,  have  stirred 
up  strifes  and  contentions,  which  have  invaded  the  peace  of 
individuals,  families,  and  societies,  and  imbittered  all  their 
enjoyments.  It  is  scarcely  too  much  to  affirm,  that  more 
than  nine-tenths  of  all  the  evils,  perplexities,  and  sorrows, 
which  are  the  lot  of  suffering  humanity,  are  owing  to  the 
wide  and  extensive  operation  of  such  diabolical  principles 
and  passions. 

What  a  happiness,  then,  must  it  be,  to  mingle  in  a  so¬ 
ciety  where  such  malignant  affections  shall  never  more  shed 
their  baleful  influence,  and  where  love,  peace,  and  harmony, 
mutual  esteem,  brotherly-kindness,  and  charity,  are  for  ever 
triumphant?  To  depart  from  a  world  where  selfishness  and 
malignity,  strife  and  dissensions,  wars  and  devastations  so 
generally  prevail,  and  to  enter  upon  a  scene  of  enjoyment 
where  the  smiles  of  benevolence  beam  from  the  counte¬ 
nances  of  unnumbered  glorious  intelligences,  must  raise  in 
the  soul  the  most  ecstatic  rapture,  and  be  the  ground-work 
of  all  those  other  “  pleasures  which  are  at  God’s  right  hand 


SOCIETY  OF  HEAVEN. 


257 


for  evermore.” — Even  in  this  world,  amidst  the  physical 
evils  which  now  exist,  what  a  scene  of  felicity  would  be 
produced,  were  all  the  illustrious  philanthropic  characters 
now  living,  or  which  have  adorned  our  race  in  the  ages 
that  are  past,  to  be  collected  into  one  society,  and  to  asso¬ 
ciate  exclusively,  without  annoyance  from  “  the  world  that 
lieth  in  wickedness!”  Let  us  suppose  a  vast  society  com 
posed  of  such  characters  as  Moses,  Elijah,  Jeremiah,  Daniel, 
Paul,  James,  and  John,  the  Evangelists,  men  who  account¬ 
ed  it  their  highest  honour  to  glorify  God  and  to  promote  the 
salvation  of  mankind, — such  philanthropists  as  Howard, 
Clarkson,  Venning,  and  Sharpe,  who  displayed  the  most  be¬ 
nignant  affections,  and  spent  their  mortal  existence  in  un¬ 
wearied  efforts  to  meliorate  the  condition  of  the  prisoner, 
and  relieve  the  distresses  of  the  wretched  in  every  land — to 
deliver  the  captive  from  his  oppressors — to  unloose  the  shac¬ 
kles  of  slavery — to  pour  light  and  vital  air  into  the  noisome 
dungeon,  and  to  diffuse  blessings  among  mankind  wherever 
they  were  found  ; — such  profound  philosophers  as  Locke, 
Newton,  and  Boyle,  whose  capacious  intellects  seemed  to 
embrace  the  worlds  both  of  matter  and  of  mind,  and  who 
joined  to  their  mental  accomplishments,  modesty,  humility, 
equanimity  of  temper,  and  general  benevolence  ; — such  ami¬ 
able  divines  as  Watts,  Doddridge,  Bates,  Hervey,  Edwards, 
Lardner,  and  Dwight,  whose  hearts  burned  with  zeal  to  pro¬ 
mote  the  glory  of  their  Divine  Master,  and  to  advance  the 
present  and  everlasting  interest  of  their  fellow. men.  To  as¬ 
sociate  perpetually  with  such  characters,  even  with  the  im¬ 
perfections  and  infirmities  which  cleaved  to  them  in  this  sub¬ 
lunary  region,  would  form  something  approaching  to  a  pa¬ 
radise  on  earth. 

But,  let  us  suppose  such  characters  divested  of  every  mo¬ 
ral  and  mental  imperfection,  endowed  with  every  holy  prin¬ 
ciple  and  virtue  that  can  adorn  a  created  intelligence,  and 
with  capacious  intellectual  powers  in  vigorous  and  incessant 
exercise,  dwelling  in  a  world  where  every  natural  evil  is 
removed,  where  scenes  of  glory  meet  the  eye  at  every  step, 
and  where  boundless  prospects  stretch  before  the  view  of  the 
enraptured  mind.  Let  us  further  suppose,  intelligences  in 
vested  with  faculties' far  more  energetic  and  sublime— who 
have  ranged  through  the  immensity  of  creation,  who  have 
mingled  with  the  inhabitants  of  ten  thousand  worlds,  who 
have  learned  the  h  story  of  the  divine  dispensations  in  rela¬ 
tion  to  them  all,  and  who  are  inspired  with  every  amiable 

22* 


258 


THE  PHILOSOrilV  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


and  benignant  feeling,  and  with  humility,  love,  and  conde¬ 
scension  ; — let  us  suppose  ambassadors  of  this  description, 
from  numerous  worlds,  occasionally  joining  this  celestial  so¬ 
ciety,  and  “  rehearsing  the  mighty  acts  of  Jehovah,”  as  dis- 
played  in  the  regions  from  whence  they  came, — let  us  sup¬ 
pose  “  the  man  Christ  Jesus”  president  among  them,  in  the 
effulgence  of  his  glory,  and  unfolding  his  peerless  excellen¬ 
cies  to  every  eye, — let  us  suppose  these  glorious  beings  en¬ 
gaged  in  conversations,  contemplations,  investigations,  thanks¬ 
givings,  adorations,  and  beneficent  services,  corresponding 
to  the  magnificence  of  the  region  in  which  they  reside,  and 
to  the  dignity  of  their  natures — and  we  have  a  faint  picture 
of  the  social  enjoyments  of  the  celestial  world.  This  is  tho 
society  of  heaven,  the  general  assembly  of  the  church  tri¬ 
umphant,  for  which  we  must  now  be  inspired  with  a  divine 
relish,  and  for  which  we  must  now  be  prepared  in  the  tem¬ 
per  and  disposition  of  our  minds,  if  we  expect  to  be  hereaf¬ 
ter  admitted  into  that  “  house  not  made  with  hands,  which  is 
eternal  in  the  heavens.” 

O  blessed  and  glorious  society !  where  no  contentions 
ever  arise,  where  no  malignant  spirit  interrupts  the  universal 
harmony,  where  no  malevolent  affection  is  ever  displayed, 
where  no  provocation  disturbs  the  serenity  of  the  mind, 
where  not  one  revengeful  thought  arises  against  the  most 
depraved  inhabitant  of  the  universe,  where  a  single  false¬ 
hood  is  sever  uttered,  where  folly,  impertinence,  and  error 
never  intrude,  where  no  frown  sits  lowering  on  the  counte¬ 
nance,  and  no  cloud  ever  intercepts  the  sunshine  of  benevo¬ 
lence  ! — where  “  Holiness  to  the  Lord”  is  inscribed  on  every 
heart,  where  every  member  is  knit  to  another  by  the  indis¬ 
soluble  bonds  of  affection  and  esteem,  where  a  friendship 
is  commenced  which  shall  never  be  dissolved,  where  love 
glows  in  every  bosom,  and  benignity  beams  from  every  coun¬ 
tenance,  where  moral  excellence  is  displayed  in  its  most 
sublime,  and  diversified,  and  transporting  forms,  where  “a 
multitude  which  no  man  can  number,  from  all  nations,  and 
kindreds,  and  people,  and  tongues,”  join  in  unison  with  an¬ 
gels  and  archangels,  principalities  and  powers,  in  swelling 
the  song  of  salvation  to  Him  that  sits  upon  the  throne,  and 
to  the  Lamb  that  was  slain,  for  ever  and  ever  ! — Ye  glorious 
hosts  of  heaven  who  minister  to  the  heirs  of  salvation  on 
earth!  Ye  redeemed  inhabitants  from  our  world,  “who 
came  out  of  great  trmulation,  and  are  now  before  the  throne 
of  God,  and  serve  him  day  and  night  in  his  temple!”  we 


EXAMPLES  OF  MALIGNITY. 


259 


long  o  join  your  blessed  society.  You  dwell  amidst  scenes 
of  magnificence  and  the  splendours  of  eternal  day  ;  —you 
are  forever  secure  from  sin  and  sorrow,  and  every  evil  an¬ 
noyance  ; — your  joys  are  uninterrupted,  ever  increasing, 
and  ever  new  ; — your  prospects  are  boundless  as  the  uni¬ 
verse,  and  your  duration  permanent  as  the  throne  of  the 
Eternal  ! — We  dwell,  “in  houses  of  clay,  whose  foundation 
is  in  the  dust we  sojourn  in  “  a  land  of  pits  and  snares,” 
and  within  “the  region  of  the  shadow  of  Death  we  walk 
amidst  scenes  of  sorrow  and  suffering,  surrounded  by  “  the 
tents  of  strife,”  and  exposed  to  the  malice  of  “  lying  lips 
and  deceitful  tongues  !”  From  our  earthly  prison  to  which 
we  are  now  chained  as  “  prisoners  of  hope,”  we  lilt  up  our 
eyes  to  your  happy  mansions,  with  longing  desires,  and  ex¬ 
claim,  “  O  that  we  had  the  wings  of  a  Seraph,  that  we  might 
fly  away  to  your  blissful  seats  and  be  at  rest  !”  We  long  to 
join  “  the  general  assembly  and  church  of  the  first  born, 
which  are  written  in  heaven — the  spirits  of  just  men  made 
perfect — the  innumerable  company  of  angels — -Jesus  the 
Mediator  of  the  New  Covenant,  and  God  the  Judge  of  all.” 

May  the  Father  of  all  mercies,  who  hath  begotten  us  to 
the  lively  hope  of  an  incorruptible  inheritance,  grant  that 
we  may  persevere  in  the  Christian  course,  be  kept  from 
falling,  be  “  guarded  by  his  Almighty  Power,  through  faith 
unto  salvation,”  and  that  in  due  time,  “  an  entrance  may 
be  abundantly  administered  to  us  into  the  everlasting  king¬ 
dom  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.”  To  whom  be 
glory  for  ever  and  ever.  Amen. 


From  the  subject  to  which  our  attention  has  now  deen  di¬ 
rected,  we  may  learn,  what  will  constitute  one  bitter  in¬ 
gredient  in  the  punishment  which  awaits  the  wicked  in  the 
future  world.  As  the  principle  of  love,  which  pervades  the 
minds  of  the  inhabitants  of  heaven,  with  the  diversified  rami¬ 
fications  into  wdiich  it  diverges,  forms  the  ground-work  of 
all  the  other  enjoyments  of  the  celestial  world, — so  the 
principle  of  malignity  which  predominates  in  the  hearts  of 
the  wicked,  will  be  the  source  of  the  greater  part  of  that 
misery  they  are  doomed  to  suffer  in  the  eternal  state. — “  We 
cannot  form  a  more  dreadful  picture  of  future  punishment, 
than  by  conceiving  the  principles  of  falsehood,  deceit,  and 
malignity,  and  the  passions  of  pride,  hatred,  malice,  and 


260 


TIIK  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


revenge  raging  with  uncontrolled  and  perpetual  violence 
e  need  represent  to  ourselves  nothing  more  horrible  in  the 
p  ace  of  punishment,  than  by  supposing  the  Almighty  sim- 

volemrd  ltt,ngiW1Cked.  ment°  e  fall  scope  to  their  male- 
volent  dispositions;  leaving  them  “to  eat  of  the  fruit  of 

the.r  own  ways  and  to  be  filled  with  their  own  devices.” 
I  he  effects  produced  by  the  uncontrolled  operation  of  such 
principles  and  passions,  would  be  such  as  may  be  fitly  repre¬ 
sented  by  the  emblems  of  the  worm  that  never  dies,  of  “  de- 
vourmg  fire  and  of  their  necessary  concomitants,  “weep, 
mg,  and  wailing,  and  gnashing  of  teeth.”* 

In  order  to  illustrate  this  sentiment,  and  to  impress  it  more 
deeply  upon  the  mind  of  the  reader,  I  shall  select  two  or 
three  facts  in  relation  to  certain  characters  whose  names 
stand  conspicuous  in  the  annals  of  history. 

-very  reader  of  history  is  acquainted  with  the  character 
and  actions  of  Antiochus  Epiphanes,  whose  name  stands  so 
high  on  the  rolls  of  impiety  and  crime.  Having  besieged 
he  city  ot  Jerusalem,  he  took  it  by  storm,  and,  during  the 
th.ee  days  it  was  abandoned  to  the  fury  of  the  soldiers!  he 
caused  forty  thousandf  men  to  be  inhumanly  butchered  :  he 
exercised  every  species  of  cruelty  upon  the  citizens,  and  un¬ 
mercifully  put  to  death  all  those  who  fell  into  his  hands,  and 
whom  he  considered  as  his  enemies.  He  despatched  Ap 
po! lomus  at  the  head  of  22,000  men,  with  orders  to  plunder 
all  the  cities  of  Judea,  to  murder  all  the  men,  and  sell  the 
women  and  children  for  slaves.  He  accordingly  came  with 
his  army,  and  to  outward  appearance,  with  a  peaceable  in- 
tention  ;  neither  was  he  suspected  by  the  Jews,  as  he  was 
superintendent  of  the  tribute  in  Palestine.  He  kept  himself 
inactive  till  the  next  Sabbath,  when  they  were  all  in  a  pro¬ 
found  quiet,  and  then,  on  a  sudden,  began  the  work  of  slaugh¬ 
ter.  He  sent  a  portion  of  his  men  to  the  temple  and  syna¬ 
gogues,  with  orders  to  cut  to  pieces  all  who  were  found  in 
these  places  of  resort ;  whilst  the  rest,  going  through  the 
s  ree  s  o  the  city,  massacred  all  who  came  in  their  way. 
He  next  ordered  the  city  to  be  plundered  and  set  on  fire, 
pulled  down  all  their  stately  buildings,  and  carried  away 
captive  ten  thousand  of  those  who  had  escaped  the  slaugh- 
ter.  Not  yet  satisfied  with  the  blood  of  the  Jews,  Antiochus 
resolved,  either  totally  to  abolish  their  religion,  or  to  destroy 

*  Philosophy  of  Religion,  pp.  G37,  638. 

I  Roll  in  stales  the  mimher  «l  80,000. 


EXAMPLES  OF  MALIGNITY. 


261 


their  whole  race.  He  issued  a  decree  that  all  nations  with¬ 
in  his  dominions  should  forsake  their  old  religion  and  gods, 
and  worship  those  of  the  king,  under  the  most  severe  pe¬ 
nalties.  lie  dedicated  the  temple  at  Jerusalem  to  Jupiter 
Olympus,  and  set  up  his  own  statue  on  the  altar  of  burnt-of¬ 
fering,  and  all  who  refused  to  come  and  worship  this  idol 
were  either  massacred  or  put  to  some  cruel  tortures,  till 
they  either  complied  or  expired  under  the  hands  of  the  ex¬ 
ecutioners.  He  put  to  death  Eleazar,  one  of  the  most  illus¬ 
trious  of  the  Jews,  a  venerable  old  man,  ninety  years  of  age, 
and  a  doctor  of  the  law,  “  whose  life  had  been  one  continu¬ 
ed  series  of  spotless  innocence,”  and  his  execution  was  ac¬ 
companied  with  the  most  cruel  torments.  He  seized  the 
seven  brothers  commonly  called  the  Maccabees ,  along  with 
their  mother,  and  caused  them  to  be  scourged  in  a  most  in¬ 
human  manner,  in  order  to  compel  them  to  swallow  swine’s 
flesh,  which  their  law  forbade,  and,  when  they  refused,  he 
was  so  exasperated  that  he  ordered  brazen  pans  and  caul¬ 
drons  to  be  heated  ;  and,  when  they  were  red,  he  caused  the 
tongue  of  the  eldest  to  be  cut  off — had  the  skin  torn  from 
his  head,  and  the  extremities  of  his  hands  and  feet  cut  off, 
before  his  mother  and  his  brethren.  After  being  mutilated, 
he  was  brought  close  to  the  fire,  and  fried  in  the  pan.  The 
second  brother  was  then  taken,  and,  after  the  hair  of  his 
head,  with  the  skin,  was  torn  away,  he  was  tortured  in  the 
same  manner  as  his  elder  brother  ;  and  in  like  manner  were 
the  other  five  brethren  put  to  death, — the  last  of  whom,  who 
was  the  youngest,  he  caused  to  be  tortured  more  grievously 
than  the  rest.  Last  of  all  the  mother  also  suffered  death.* 

Hearing,  some  time  afterward,  that  the  Jews  had  revolted, 
he  assembled  all  his  troops,  which  formed  a  mighty  army, 
and  determined  to  destroy  the  whole  Jewish  nation,  and  to 
settle  other  people  in  their  country.  He  commanded 
Lysias,  one  of  his  generals,  to  extirpate  them  root  and 
branch,  so  as  not  to  leave  one  Hebrew  in  the  country. 
When  in  Persia,  advice  was  brought  him  of  the  defeat  of 
Lysias,  and  that  the  Jews  had  retaken  the  temple,  thrown 
down  the  altars  and  idols  which  he  had  set  up,  and  re-esta¬ 
blished  their  ancient  worship.  At  this  news  his  fury  rose 
to  madness.  In  the  violence  of  his  rage,  he  set  out  with  all 
possible  expedition,  like  an  infernal  fiend,  venting  nothing 

*  The  details  of  these  shocking  cruelties  may  be  seen  in  Robin's  Ancient 
History,  voi  7. 


2G2 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


but  menaces  on  his  march,  and  breathing  only  final  ruin  and 
destruction  to  every  inhabitant  of  Judea,  and  to  all  that  ap- 
pertained  to  them.  He  commanded  his  coachman  to  drive 
with  the  utmost  speed,  that  no  time  might  be  lost  for  fully 
satiating  his  vengence,  threatening  at  the  same  time,  with 
horrid  imprecations,  to  make  Jerusalem  the  burying  place  of 
the  whole  Jewish  nation,  and  not  to  leave  one  single  inhabi. 
ant  within  its  confines.  But  the  Almighty,  against  whose 
providence  he  was  raging,  interposed,  and  stopped  him  in  his 
wild  career.  “  He  was  seized,”  says  Rollin,  “with  incredi¬ 
ble  pains  in  his  bowels,  and  the  most  excessive  pangs  of  the 
colic.”  Still,  his  pride  and  fury  were  not  abated  :  he  suf¬ 
fered  himself  to  be  hurried  away  by  the  wild  transport  of  his 
rage,  and  breathing  nothing  but  vengeance  against  the  land 
of  Judea  and  its  inhabitants,  he  gave  orders  to  proceed  with 
still  greater  celerity  in  his  journey.  But  as  his  horses  were 
running  forward  impetuously,  he  fell  from  his  chariot,  and 
bruised  every  part  of  his  body  in  so  dreadful  a  manner,  that 
he  suffered  inexpressible  torments'*;  and  soon  after  finished 
an  impious  life  by  a  miserable  death. 

The  Turks,  in  their  wars  with  neighbouring  states,  both  in 
former  and  present  times,  have  been  proverbial  for  the  ma¬ 
levolence  they  have  displayed,  and  the  cruelties  they  have 
exercised  towards  their  enemies.  The  following  is  only  one 
instance  out  of  a  thousand  which  might  be  produced,  of  the 
desperate  length  to  which  human  beings  will  proceed  in 
treachery  and  in  the  infliction  of  torment,  when  under  the 
influence  of  a  principle  of  malignity. 

In  the  war  with  Turkey  and  the  States  of  Venice,  about 
the  year  1571,  the  Venetians  were  besieged  by  the  Turks  in 
the  city  of  Famagosta,  in  the  island  of  Cyprus.  Through 
famine  and  want  of  ammunition,  the  Venetian  garrison  was 
compelled  to  enter  upon  terms  of  capitulation.  A  treaty  was 
accordingly  set  on  foot,  and  hostages  exchanged.  The  fol¬ 
lowing  terms  were  agreed  to  by  both  parties  : — That  the 
officers  and  soldiers  should  march  out  with  all  the  honours 
of  war,  drums  beating,  colours  flying,  five  pieces  of  cannon, 
all  their  baggage,  and  be  conveyed  in  safety  to  Candia,  un¬ 
der  an  escort  of  three  Turkish  gallies;  and  that  the  inhabit¬ 
ants  should  remain  in  the  free  use  ofiheir  religion,  untouch¬ 
ed  in  their  property,  and  in  full  possession  of  their  freedom. 
Next  day,  Bragadino,  the  Venetian  commander,  went  to  pay 
his  compliments  to  Mustapha,  the  Turkish  general,  attended 
by  some  of  his  chief  officers.  At  first  they  met  with  a  civil 


EXAMPLES  OF  MALIGNITY. 


2G3 


reception,  Mustapha  ordering  a  seat  to  be  placed  for  Braga- 
dino  on  his  own  right  hand.  They  soon  entered  into  dis¬ 
course  about  the  prisoners,  and  Mustapha  taxing  Bragadino 
with  some  violences  committed  by  the  garrison  during  the 
suspension  granted  for  settling  a  capitulation,  Bragadino, 
with  a  generous  disdain,  denied  the  charge.  Upon  which 
Mustapha,  rising  up  in  a  fury,  ordered  him  to  be  bound  hand 
and  foot,  and  the  others  to  be  massacred  before  his  face, 
without  regard  to  hospitality,  their  bravery,  the  treaty  sub¬ 
sisting,  or  their  being  unarmed. 

Bragadino  was  reserved  for  a  more  cruel  treatment :  after 
being  insulted  with  the  most  vilifying  and  opprobrious  lan¬ 
guage  ;  after  undergoing  the  most  excruciating  tortures  ; 
after  having  his  ears,  nose,  and  lips  slit,  his  neck  was 
stretched  upon  a  block,  and  trampled  upon  by  the  dastardly 
Mustapha,  who  asked  him,  where  was  now  that  Christ  whom 
he  worshipped,  and  why  he  did  not  deliver  him  out  of  his 
hands  ?  At  the  same  time  the  soldiers  on  board  the  fleet 
were  despoiled  of  every  thing  and  lashed  to  the  oars.  3  his 
day’s  work  being  finished,  Mustapha  entered  the  city,  where 
he  gave  immediate  orders  that  Tiepolo,  a  person  of  high 
rank  and  authority,  should  be  hanged  upon  a  gibbet.  A 
few  days  after,  before  Bragadino  had  recovered  from  the 
wounds  he  had  received,  he  was  carried  in  derision  to  all 
the  breaches  made  in  the  walls,  loaded  with  buckets  filled 
with  earth  and  mortar,  and  ordered  to  kiss  the  ground  as 
often  as  he  passed  by  Mustapha;  a  spectacle  that  raised 
pangs  of  pity  in  the  callous  hearts  of  the  meanest  Turkish 
soldiers,  but  could  not  move  compassion  in  the  obdurate 
breast  of  Mustapha.  Afterward,  the  brave  Bragadino  was 
cooped  up  in  a  cage,  and  ignominiously  hung  to  a  sail-yard 
in  one  of  the  gallies,  where  his  intrepid  soldiers  were  chained 
to  the  oars.  This  sight  rendered  them  almost  furious  :  they 
exclaimed  against  the  baseness,  the  treachery  of  Mustapha  ; 
they  called  aloud  for  revenge,  and  desired  to  be  set  at  liberty 
that  they  might,  even  without  arms,  rescue  their  brave  gene¬ 
ral,  and  inflict  the  deserved  punishment  upon  their  mean, 
dastardly,  and  cowardly  foes.  Their  request  was  answered 
with  cruel  lashes  :  Bragadino  was  taken  down,  conducted  to 
the  market  place,  amidst  the  din  of  trumpets,  drums,  and 
other  warlike  instruments,  where  he  was  flayed  alive,  and  a 
period  put  to  his  glorious  life.  His  skin  was  hung,  by  way 
of  trophy,  to  the  sail-yard  of  a  galley  sent  round  all  the  coasts 
to  insult  the  Venetians.  His  head,  with  those  of  Andrea 


264 


Till-;  FUILOSOFUV  OF  a  j  utliif  statu. 


Bragadino,  his  broilier,  Ludovico  Martinenga,  and  the  brave 
Qtiirino,  were  sent  as  presents  to  Seiim  the  Turkish  em 
peror.* 

Could  an  internal  fiend  have  devised  more  excruciating 
tortures,  or  have  acted  with  greater  baseness  and  malignity 
than  this  treacherous  and  cruel  monster?  What  a  horrible 
thing  would  it  be  to  be  subjected  to  the  caprice,  and  under 
the  control  of  such  a  proud  and  vindictive  spirit  every  day, 
only  for  a  year,  much  more  for  hundreds  and  thousands  of 
years  !  A  group  of  such  spirits  giving  vent  to  their  malevo¬ 
lent  passions  without  control,  are  sufficient  to  produce  a  de¬ 
gree  of  misery  among  surrounding  intelligences,  surpassing 
every  thing  that  the  human  mind,  in  the  present  state,  can 
possibly  conceive. 

When  the  Norman  barons  and  chevaliers,  under  William 
the  Conqueror,  had  obtained  possession  of  England,  they  dis¬ 
played  the  most  cruel  and  malignant  dispositions  towards  the 
native  inhabitants.  They  afflicted  and  harassed  them  in 
every  shape,  forcing  them  to  work  at  the  building  of  their 
castles;  and  when  the  castles  were  finished,  they  placed  on 
them  a  garrison  of  wicked  and  diabolical  men.  They  seized 
all  whom  they  thought  to  possess  any  thing — men  and  women 
— by  day  and  night:  they  carried  them  off;  imprisoned  them  ; 
and,  to  obtain  from  them  gold  or  silver,  inflicted  on  them  tor¬ 
tures  such  as  no  martyrs  ever  underwent.  Some  they  sus- 
pended  by  their  feet,  and  their  heads  hanging  in  smoke  ; 
others  were  hung  by  the  thumb,  with  fire  under  their  feet. 
They  pressed  the  heads  of  some  by  a  leathern  thong,  so  as 
to  break  the  bones,  and  crush  the  brain  ;  others  were  thrown 
into  ditches  full  of  snakes,  toads,  and  other  reptiles  ;  others 
were  put  in  the  chambre  a  crucit.  This  was  the  name  given 
in  the  Norman  tongue  to  a  sort  of  chest,  short,  strait,  and 
shallow,  lined  with  sharp  stones,  into  which  the  sufferer  was 
crammed  to  the  dislocation  *of  his  limbs. — In  most  of  the  cas- 
ties  was  a  horrible  and  frightful  engine  used  for  putting  to 
the  torture.  This  was  a  bundle  of  chains  so  heavy  that  two 
or  three  men  could  hardly  lift  them.  The  unfortunate  per¬ 
son  upon  whom  they  were  laid,  was  kept  on  his  feet  by  an 
iron  collar  fixed  in  a  post,  and  could  neither  sit,  nor  lie,  nor 
slf*ep.  They  made  many  thousands  die  of  hunger.  They 
laid  tribute  upon  tribute  on  the  towns  and  villages.  When 
the  towns-people  had  no  longer  any  thing  to  give,  they  plun¬ 
dered  and  burnt  the  town.  You  might  have  travelled  a  whole 

*  See  “  Modern  Universal  History,”  vol.  27.  pp.  405,  406. 


EXAMPLES  OF  DEPRAVITY. 


265 


day  without  finding  one  soul  in  the  towns,  or  in  the  country  one 
cultivated  field.  The  poor  died  of  hunger,  and  they  who  had 
formerly  possessed  something,  now  begged  their  bread  from 
door  to  door.  Never  were  more  griefs  and  woes  poured  upon 
any  land  ; — nay,  the  Pagans  in  their  invasions  caused  fewer 
than  the  men  of  whom  I  now  speak.  They  spared  neither 
the  church-yards  nor  the  churches  ;  they  took  all  that  could 
be  taken,  and  then  set  fire  to  the  church.  To  till  the  ground 
had  been  as  vain  as  to  till  the  sand  on  the  sea-shore.* 

What  scenes  of  wretchedness  do  such  proud  and  malig¬ 
nant  demons  produce  even  in  the  present  world  !  Can  such 
spirits  be  supposed  qualified  for  joining  the  general  assembly 
and  church  of  the  first  born,  and  for  taking  a  part  in  the  be¬ 
neficent  operations  of  heaven?  If  they  exist  at  all  in  a  fu¬ 
ture  world,  they  must  exist  in  misery ;  and  so  long  as  such 
diabolical  passions  continue  to  rage,  they  must  produce  “la¬ 
mentation  and  woe”  among  all  the  associates  with  which  they 
are  surrounded. — Even  within  the  confines  of  mortality,  the 
man  who  is  under  the  despotic  sway  of  pride,  ambition,  and 
similar  malevolent  passions,  embitters  every  enjoyment  he 
might  otherwise  possess,  produces  pain  in  the  minds  of  others 
and  experiences  in  his  own  soul  pangs  similar  in  kind  t'. 
those  which  are  felt  in  the  place  of  punishment.  I  shal. 
illustrate  this  position  by  the  spirit  and  temper  displayed  bj 
two  illustrious  individuals  who  have  lately  departed  to  the 
invisible  state  ; — the  one  renowned  in  the  political,  and  the 
other  in  the  literary  world. 

The  first  character  to  which  I  allude  is  that  of  Napoleon 
Buonaparte.  This  extraordinary  man,  who,  for  nearly  twenty 
years,  dazzled  the  whole  eastern  hemisphere,  like  a  blazing 
neteor,  appears  to  have  been  actuated  by  the  most  extrava¬ 
gant  and  restless  ambition.  Though  he  exercised  many 
cruelties  in  the  midst  of  his  career,  as  at  Jaffa  and  other 
places,  yet  delight  in  deeds  of  atrocity  formed  no  part-of  his 
ruling  passion,  and  were  only  occasionally  resorted  to  in 
order  to  accomplish  his  ambitious  projects.  The  agitated 
state  of  mind  into  which  he  was  thrown  by  his  love  of  con¬ 
quest,  and  the  daring  enterprises  in  which  he  embarked,  is 
strikingly  depicted  by  M.  Segur,  in  his  “  History  of  Napo¬ 
leon’s  Expedition  to  Russia.”  When  at  Vitepsk,  on  his  way 
to  Moscow,  M.  Segur  says — “  He  at  first  hardly  appeared 
bold  enough  to  confess  to  himself  a  project  of  such  great 

*  Thierry’s  “  History  of  the  Norman  Conquest,”  3  vols.  1825. 

23 


266 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


temeritv  [the  marching  against  Moscow].  But,  by  degrees 
he  assumed  courage  to  look  it  in  the  face.  He  then  began 
to  deliberate,  and  the  state  of  great  irresolution  which  tor¬ 
mented  his  mind,  affected  his  whole  frame.  He  was  observ¬ 
ed  to  wander  about  his  apartments,  as  if  pursued  by  some 
dangerous  temptation  :  nothing  could  rivet  his  attention;  he 
every  moment  began,  quitted,  and  resumed  his  labour  ;  he 
walked  about  without  any  object  ;  inquired  the  hour,  and 
looked  at  his  watch  ; — completely  absorbed,  he  stopped, 
•hummed  a  tune  with  an  absent  air,  and  again  began  walking 
about*  In  the  midst  of  his  perplexity,  he  occasionally  ad¬ 
dressed  the  persons  whom  he  met  with  such  half  sentences 
as,  ‘  Well  !— What  shall  we  do  !— Shall  we  stay  where  we 
are,  or  advance  ? — How  is  it  possible  to  stop  short  in  the 
midst  of  so  glorious  a  career!’  He  did  not  wait  for  their 
reply,  but  still  kept  wandering  about,  as  if  he  was  looking  for 
something,  or  somebody,  to  terminate  his  indecision. — At 
length,  quite  overwhelmed  with  the  weight  of  such  an  import¬ 
ant  consideration,  and  oppressed  with  so  great  an  uncertainty, 
he  would  throw  himself  on  one  of  the  beds  which  he  had 
caused  to  be  laid  on  the  floor  of  his  apartments.  His  frame, 
exhausted  by  the  heat  and  the  struggles  of  his  mind,  could 
only  bear  a  covering  of  the  slightest  texture.  It  was  in  that 
state  that  he  passed  a  portion  of  his  day  at  Vitepsk.” 

I  he  same  restless  agitations  seemed  to  have  accompanied 
him  at  every  step  in  this  daring  expedition.  “  At  Borodino,” 
says  the  same  writer,  “  his  anxiety  was  so  great"  as  to  pre¬ 
vent  him  from  sleeping.  He  kept  calling  incessantly  to 
know  the  hour,  inquiring  if  any  noise  was  heard,  and  sending 
persons  to  ascertain  if  the  enemy  was  still  before  him.— 
Tranquillized  for  a  few  moments,  anxiety  of  an  opposite  descrip¬ 
tion  again  seized  him.  He  became  frightened  at  the  destitute 
state  of  the  soldiers,  &c.  He  sent  for  Bessieres,  that  one  of 
his  marshals  in  whom  he  had  the  greatest  confidence he 
called  him  back  several  times  and  repeated  his  pressing  ques¬ 
tions,  &c.  Dreading  that  his  orders  had  not  been  obeyed,  he 
got  up  once  more,  and  questioned  the  grenadiers  on  guard  at 
the  entrance  of  his  tent,  if  they  had  received  their  provisions. 
Satisfied  with  the  answer,  he  went  in,  and  soon  fell  into  a 
dose.  Shortly  after  he  called  once  more.  His  aide-de-camp 
found  him  now  supporting  his  head  with  both  his  hands,  he 
seemed,  by  what  was  overheard  to  be  meditating  on  the 
vanities  of  glory.— “  What  is  war?  A  trade  of  barbarians, 
the  whole  art  of  which  consists  in  being  the  strongest  on  a 


EXAMPLES  OF  DEPRAVITY. 


267 


given  point.’  He  then  complained  of  the  fickleness  of  for- 
tune  which  he  now  began  to  experience.  He  again  tried  to 
take  some  rest.  But  the  marches  he  had  just  made  with  the 
army,  the  fatigues  of  the  preceding  days  and  nights,  so  many 
cares,  and  his  intense  and  anxious  expectations  had  worn 
him  out.  An  irritating  fever,  a  dry  cough,  and  excessive 
thirst  consumed  him.  During  the  remainder  of  the  night  he 
made  vai-n  attempts  to  quench  the  burning  thirst  that  con- 
sumed  him. 

What  man  that  ever  enjoyed  the  pleasures  of  tranquillity, 
would  envy  such  a  state  of  mind  as  that  which  has  now 
been  described,  although  the  individual  were  surrounded 
with  every  earthly  glory  ?  Such  mad  ambition  as  that  which 
raged  in  the  breast  of  this  singular  personage,  must  be  a 
perpetual  torment  to  its  possessor,  in  whatever  region  of  the 
universe  he  exists,  and  must  produce  baleful  effects  on  every 
one  within  the  sphere  of  its  influence. — The  coolness  with 
which  such  characters  calculated  on  the  destruction  of  human 
life,  and  the  miseries  which  their  lawless  passions  produce 
on  their  fellow  creatures,  appears  in  the  following  extract. — 

“  He  asked  Rapp,  if  he  thought  we  should  gain  the  vie- 
tory?  ‘  No  doubt,’ was  the  reply,  ‘but  it  will  be  sanguin¬ 
ary.’  ‘  I  know  it,’  resumed  Napoleon,  ‘  but  I  have  80,000 
men  ;  I  shall  lose  20,000  ;  I  shall  enter  Moscow  with  60,000  ; 
the  stragglers  will  then  rejoin  us,'  and  afterwards  the  bat¬ 
talions  on  the  march  ;  and  we  shall  be  stronger  than  we 
were  before  the  battle-*’ 

The  other  personage  to  whom  I  alluded  is  Lord  Byron. 
The  following  sketches  of  his  character  are  taken  from 
“  Recollections  of  the  life  of  Lord  Byron,  from  the  year 
1808,  to  the  year  1818.  Taken  from  authentic  documents, 
&c.”  by  R.  C.  Dallas,  Esq- 

“  He  reduced  his  palate,”  says  Mr.  Dallas,  “  to  a  diet  the 
most  simple  and  abstemious — but  the  passions  of  his  heart 
were  too  mighty  ;  nor  did  it  ever  enter  his  mind  to  overcome 
them •  Resentment,  anger,  and  hatred,  held  full  sway  over 
him  ;  and  his  greatest  gratification  at  that  time,  was  in  over¬ 
charging  his  pen  with  gall,  which  flowed  in  every  direction, 
against  individuals,  his  country,  the  world,  the  universe,  cre¬ 
ation,  and  the  Creator. — Misanthropy,  disgust  of  life,  lead- 
ing  to  scepticism  and  impiety,  prevailed  in  his  heart  and 
imbittered  his  existence.  Unaccustomed  to  female  society, 
he  at  once  dreaded  and  abhorred  it.  As  for  domestic  hap¬ 
piness  he  had  no  idea  of  it.  ‘  A  large  family,*  he  said,  ‘  ap- 


268 


TIIE  TIIILOSOPIU  OF  A  FUTURE  STATE. 


peared  like  opposite  ingredients,  mixed  per  force  in  the 
same  salad,  and  I  never  relished  the  composition.’  He  was 
so  completely  disgusted  with  his  relations,  especially  the  fe¬ 
male  part  of  them,  that  he  completely  avoided  them.  ‘  I 
consider,  said  he,  ‘  collateral  ties  as  the  work  of  prejudice, 
and  not  the  bond  of  the  heart,  which  must  choose  for  itself 
unshackled.  In  correspondence  with  such  dispositions  and 
sentiments,  “lie  talked  of  his  relation  the  Earl  of  Carlisle, 
with  indgnation.”  Having  received  from  him  a  frigid  let¬ 
ter,  “  he  determined  to  lash  his  relation  with  all  the  gall  he 
could  throvv  into  satire.” — He  declaimed  against  the  ties  of 
consanguinity,  and  abjured  even  the  society  of  his  sister, 
from  which  he  entirely  withdrew  himself,  until  after  the  pub! 
lication  of  ‘  Childe  Harold,’  when  at  length  he  yielded  to  mv 
persuasions,  and  made  advances  to  a  friendly  correspondence.” 

Here  we  have  a  picture  of  an  individual,  in  whom  “  re¬ 
sentment,  anger,  and  hatred,”  reigned  without  control  ;  who 
could  vent  his  rage  even  against  the  Creator,  and  the  uni¬ 
verse  he  had  formed,  who  haled  his  fellow  creatures,  and 
even  his  own  existence  ;  who  spurned  at  the  ties  of  relation¬ 
ship,  and  “  abjured  even  the  society  of  his  sister.”  What 
horrible  mischiefs  and  miseries  would  a  character  of  this  de¬ 
scription  produce,  were  such  malevolent  passions  to  rage 
with  unbounded  violence,  without  being  checked  by  those 
restraints,  which  human  laws  impose  in  the  present  state  ! 

I  shall  state  only  another  example  of  this  description,  taken 
from  Captain  Cochrane’s  “  Travels  in  Russia.” — On  arriv¬ 
ing  at  the  Prussian  frontiers,  says  the  captain,  “  My  pass¬ 
port  demanded,  myself  interrogated  by  a  set  of  whiskered 
ruffians,  obliged  to  move  from  one  guard  to  another,  the  ob¬ 
ject  of  sarcasm  and  official  tyranny,  I  wanted  no  induce¬ 
ment,  fatigued  as  I  was,  to  proceed  on  my  journey,  but  even 
this  was  not  permitted  me.  A  large  public  room  full  of  mi¬ 
litary  rubbish,  and  two  long  benches  serving  as  chairs,  to  an 
equally  long  table,  were  the  place  and  furniture  allotted  me. 

I  asked  the  landlord  for  supper  ;  he  laughed  at  me  ;  and  to 
my  demand  of  a  bed,  grinningly  pointed  to  the  floor,  and  re¬ 
fused  me  even  a  portion  of  the  straw  which  had  been  brought 
in  for  the  soldiers.  Of  all  the  demons  that  ever  existed, ^or 
have  been  imagined  in  human  shape,  1  thought  the  land¬ 
lord  of  the  inn  the  blackest.  The  figure  of  Gil  Peres  occur, 
red  to  me,  but  it  sunk  in  the  comparison  with  the  wretch 
then  before  me  for  ill  nature,  malignity,  and  personal  hi¬ 
deousness.  His  face  half  covered  with  a  black  beard,  and 


EXAMPLES  OF  DEPRAVITY. 


209 


larcre  bristly  whiskers,  his  stature  below  the  common,  nis 
head  sunk  between  his  shoulders  to  make  room  for  the  pro- 
tuberance  of  his  back  ;  his  eyes  buried  in  the  ragged  locks 
of  his  lank  grisly  hair ; — added  to  this  a  club  foot,  and  a 
voice  which,  on  every  attempt  to  speak,  was  like  the  shriek- 
incr  of  a  screech  owl, — and  you  have  some  faint  idea  of  this 
mockery  of  a  man.” — Here,  we  have  presented  to  view  a 
human  being,  who,  in  the  malignity  of  his  mind,  and  in  the 
conformation  of  his  body,  bears  a  certain  resemblance  to 
those  wretched  beings  in  whose  breasts  benevolence  never 
ylows,  and  in  whose  dwellings  nothing  is  seen  but  the  most 
haggard  and  deformed  objects,  and  nothing  heard  but  hor¬ 
rid  imprecations,  and  the  sounds  of  woe. 

Let  us  now  suppose,  for  a  moment,  a  vast  assemblage  of 
bein<>s  of  the  dsecription  to  which  I  have  adverted,  collected 
in  a  dark  and  dreary  region.  Let  us  suppose  many  thou¬ 
sands  of  millions  of  such  characters  as  Nero,  who  set  fire 
to  Rome,  that  he  might  amuse  himself  with  the  wailings  and 
lamentations  which  this  calamity  inspired,  and  insulted  Hea¬ 
ven  by  offering  thanksgivings  to  the  gods,  after  murdering 
his  wife  and  his  mother, — Tiberius  who  delighted  in  tortur¬ 
ing  his  subjects,  and  massacring  them  in  the  most  torment¬ 
ing  and  cruel  manner, — Caligula,  celebrated  in  the  annals 
of  folly,  cruelty,  and  impiety,  who  murdered  many  of  his 
subjects  with  his  own  hand,  and  caused  thousands  who  were 
guilty  of  no  crimes  to  be  cruelly  butchered, — Antiochus  Epi - 
phanes  who  butchered  forty  thousand  of  the  inhabitants  of 
Jerusalem  in  cold  blood,  and  rushed  forward,  like  an  infer¬ 
nal  demon,  with  the  intention  of  destroying  every  inhabi¬ 
tant  of  Judea, — Hamilcar  who  threw  all  the  prisoners 
that  came  into  his  hand,  to  be  devoured  by  wild  beasts, 
Asdrubal  who  put  out  the  eyes  of  all  the  Roman  captives  he 
had  taken  during  two  years,  cut  off  their  noses,  fingers, 
legs,  and  arms,  tore  their  skin  to  pieces  with  iron  rakes  and 
hfTrrows,  and  threw  them  headlong  from  the  top  of  his  bat¬ 
tlements, — Jenghiz  Khan  who  caused  seventy  chiefs  to  be 
thrown  into  as  many  caldrons  of  boiling  water,  and  took  plea¬ 
sure  in  beholding  his  army  beheading  a  hundred  thousand 
prisoners  at  once, — Tamerlane  who  displayed  his  sportive 
cruelty  in  pounding  three  or  four  thousand  people  in  large 
mortars,  or  building  them  among  bricks  and  mortar  info  a 
wall, — Mustapha  who  treacherously  murdered  the  Venetian 
officers,  after  having  entered  into  a  treaty  with  them,  and 
who  beheld  with  delight  the  noble  minded  Bragadino,  whom 

23* 


270 


the  philosophy  of  a  future  state. 


ambftf f^r“el,y  *ort”red’ flayecl  abve> — Buonaparte,  whose  mad 
ambmon  sacrificed  so  many  millions  of  human  beings,  and 

Wed^r’*,  ,niLWh°,Se  breaSt  “rese»tment,  anger,’  and 
.  a  red,  raged  with  violence,  and  who  made  his  gall  flow 

out,  against  individuals,  his  country,  the  world,  the  uni. 

verse,  creation,  and  the  Creator  ;”-]et  us  suppose  such 

characters  associated  together  in  a  world  where  no  pleasing 

objects  mee  the  eye,  or  cheer  the  heart  and  imagination" 

and  let  us  hkevv.se  suppose,  that  the  malignant  princples 

d  boisterous  passions  which  re.gned  in  their  minds  dunmr 

the  present  state,  still  continue  to  rage  with  uncontrolled  and 

perpetual  violence  against  all  surrounding  associates  -—it  is 

ev, dent  that,  in  such  a  case,  a  scene  of  misery  wmild  be 

produced  beyond  the  power  of  the  human  mind  edherto  con- 

~  Ta  u  r  Ifi  S°  dreadful  effeCts  have  bee"  pro- 
.  d’  r»y  SU  jh  d,abol,cal  passions  even  in  the  present  world, 
here  Providence  “  sets  restraining  bounds  to  the  wrath  of 
man,  and  where  benignant  dispositions  are  blended  with  the 
evil  principles  which  so  generally  prevail,  what  must  be  the 
effects  where  pure  malignity,  without  any  mixture  of  bene- 
volent  feelings,  reigns  universally,  is  perpetually  tormenting 
its  objects,  is  ever  increasing  in  its  fury,  and  is  never  con- 
Jrolled  by  physical  obstructions  or  by  moral  considerations'? 
Ih.s  is  the  society  of  hell  :  this  is  the  essence  of  future  mi. 
sery :  this  is  “the  worm  that  never  dies,  and  the  fire  that  is 
never  quenched and  the  natural  effects  produced  by  it  is 
universal  anguish  and  despair,— “  weeping,  and  wailing,  and 
gnashing  of  teeth.”— such  be  the  end  of  the  ungodly,  and 
the  malignant  despiser  of  God’s  law,  and  the  riches  of  his 
mercy  as  manifested  in  Christ  Jesus, — how  careful  should 

we  be  to  counteract  every  evil  propensity  and  passion,  and 

how  fervently  ought  we  to  join  in  the  prayer  of  the  Psalmist, 
and  in  the  resolution  of  Jacob  :  “  Gather  not  my  soul  with 
sinners,  nor  my  life  with  bloody  men.”  “  O  my  soul,  come 
not  thou  into  their  secret ;  unto  their  assembly,  mine  hon¬ 
our,  be  not  thou  united  !” 

,  *  Author  trusts,  that  none  of  his  readers  will  for  a  moment  suppose 
dial,  in  bringing  forward  the  above-mentioned  characters  as  examples  of 
malignity,  he  presumes  to  decide  on  their  eternal  destiny.  His  object 
merely  is  to  show,  that  such  malignant  principles  and  passions  as  thev  dis- 

s  rilv  le'el  n  ,vner  ‘w  v  thcir  ?°nd£ct>  ^  Cutely  persisted  in,  neces-  , 
*  Ieao  misery.  With  regard  to  Buonaparte  and  Lord  Byron  he  is 
disposed  to  indulge  a  hope,  that  their  malevolent  dispositions  were  in’ some 

Th"  tKlCte  ’  11fore  they  Passec1  int0  ,he  eternal  world.  The 
&iounds  ot  his  hope,  on  this  point,  are  stated  in  the  Appendix. 


EFFECTS  OF  MALIGNITY. 


271 


Lei  none  imagine,  because  I  have  selected  some  of  the 
more  atrocious  characters  recorded  in  history,  as  illustra¬ 
tions  of  the  effects  of  depravity— that  only  such  are  “  vessels 
of  wrath,  fitted  for  destruction.”  The  principle  of  malevo- 
lence  is  substantially  the  same  in  every  heart  where  it  is  pre¬ 
dominant,  however  much  it  may  be  varnished  over  by  hypo¬ 
crisy,  dissimulation,  and  the  various  forms  of  politeness  which 
prevail  in  the  world ;  and  it  requires  only  a  certain  stimulus 
to  excite  it  to  action,  and  full  scope  to  exert  its  energies,  in 
order  to  produce  the  most  horrible  and  extensive  effects. 
Several  of  the  atrocious  characters  to  which  I  have  alluded, 
appeared  in  the  commencement  of  their  career,  to  be  pos¬ 
sessed  of  a  certain  portion  of  benevolence,  and  of  other  ami¬ 
able  qualities.  Nero,  in  the  beginning  of  his  reign,  showed 
several  marks  of  the  greatest  kindness  and  condescension, 
affability,  complaisance,  and  popularity.  When  he  was  de¬ 
sired  to  sign  his  name  to  a  list  of  malefactors  that  were  to  be 
executed,  he  exclaimed,  “  would  to  Heaven  I  could  not  write  . 
—Caligula  began  his  reign  with  every  promising  appearance 
of  becoming  the  real  father  of  his  people.  Tiberius  at  first 
concealed  his  thoughts  under  the  mask  of  an  impenetrable 
dissimulation.  He  governed  with  moderation,  and  even  ap¬ 
peared  to  excel  in  modesty.  But  afterwards  when  these 
individuals  became  intoxicated  with  power,  and  had  thrown 
aside  all  considerations  of  morality  and  decorum,  the  latent 
principles  of  malignity  burst  forth  in  all  their  violence,  till 
they  became  a  scourge  and  an  execration  to  mankind.  So 
will  it  happen  with  those  who  now  harbour  malicious  and 
vindictive  passions,  under  a  cloak  of  dissimulation  and 
fashionable  politeness,  when  they  enter  the  invisible  world 
under  the  dominion  of  such  affections.  When  the  restraints 
of  societv,  of  common  decorum,  and  of  human  laws,  are 
completely  removed;  when  they  have  lost  all  hopes  of  divine 
mercy  ;  when  they  find  themselves  surrounded  by  none  but 
malignant  associates,  and  when  they  feel  the  effects  of  their 
infernal  malice  and  revenge — those  passions,  which  some¬ 
times  lay  dormant  in  this  life,  wilLbe  roused  into  action,  and 
rage  with  ungovernable  fury  against  every  one  around, 
against  themselves,  “  against  the  universe,  and  against  the  ^ 

CrNor  let  it  be  imagined,  that  God  will  interpose  at  the  hour 
of  death,  and,  by  an  exertion  of  his  power  and  benevolence, 
destroy  the  principles  of  sin,  and  prepare  such  characters  for 
the  joj  s  of  heaven.  Such  an  interference,  m  every  ind.vi- 


272 


GENERAL  CONCLUSIONS. 


dual  case,  would  imply  a  continued  miracle,  and  would  be  in¬ 
consistent  with  the  established  order  of  the  Divine  govern, 
ment ;  as  it  would  supersede  the  use  of  all  those  instructions, 
admonitions,  and  moral  preparations  which  God  hath  appoint¬ 
ed  for  rendering  his  people  “meet  for  the  inheritance  of  the 
saints  in  light  and  would  prevent  the  moral  renovation  of 
the  world,  which  is  now  gradually  effecting  by  the  exertions 
of  those  who  are  “  renewed  in  the  spirit  of  their  minds.”  It 
is  true,  indeed,  that  the  mercy  of  God  is  infinite,  and  that  so 
long  as  there  is  life,  there  is  hope  ;  so  that  the  most  aban¬ 
doned  sinner  has  no  reason  to  despair,  while  he  remains 
within  the  confines  of  the  present  state.  But  as  for  those 
who  pa  S3  from  time  into  eternity,  evidently  under  the  power 
of  revengeful  and  depraved  passions,  we  have  but  slender 
grounds  on  which  to  hope  that  they  shall  ever  afterwards  be 
prepared  for  the  felicity  of  heaven. 


From  the  whole  of  what  I  have  stated  in  this  department 
of  my  subject,  it  is  evident,  that  there  are  two  different  states 
in  the  future  world  ;  or,  in  other  words  a  heaven  and  a  hell  ; 
a  state  of  Happiness  and  a  state  of  misery.  If  human  beings 
are  »o  exist  at  all  in  another  region  of  creation,  and  through- 
out  an  unlimited  duration,  it  is  necessary  that  there  be  a  se¬ 
paration  effected,  on  the  ground  of  their  leading  dispositions 
and  characters.  The  nature  of  things,  the  moral  constitu¬ 
tion  of  the  universe,  and  the  happiness  of  the  intelligent 
creation,  as  well  as  the  decree  of  the  Creator,  require,  that 
such  an  arrangement  should  take  place.  For  it  is  altogethei 
incompatible  with  the  laws  of  moral  order,  that  pride,  hatred, 
malignity  and  revenge,  should  dwell  in  the  same  abode  with 
humility,  benevolence,  friendship,  and  love  ;  or,  that  beings, 
actuated  by  principles  and  affections  diametrically  opposite 
to  each  other,  could  engage  with  harmony  in  the  same  em¬ 
ployments,  and  relish  the  same  pleasures.  Were  such  an 
incongruous  association  permitted,  the  moral  universe  would 
soon  become  a  scene  of  universal  anarchy,  and  happiness 
banished  from  all  worlds.  So  that  the  two  states  of  immor¬ 
tality  revealed  in  Scripture,  are  equally  accordant  with  the 
dictates  of  reason,  and  with  the  declaration  of  our  Saviour, 
who  has  solemnly  assured  us,  that  "the  wicked  shall  depart 
into  everlasting  punishment,  and  the  righteous  into  life 
eternal.” 


APPENDIX. 


The  following  facts  and  documents,  in  relation  to  Lord  Byron,  lead 
us  to  indulge  the  hope,  that,  prior  to  his  dissolution,  he  was  actuated  by 
sentiments  and  dispositions,  different  from  those  which  are  stated  at  pa¬ 
ges  267,  268. 

The  lady  of  Mr.  John  Shepherd  of  F rome  having  died  some  time  ago, 
leaving  amongst  her  papers,  a  prayer  which  her  husband  believed  to 
have  been  composed  on  behalf  of  the  noble  P oet,  Mr.  Shepherd  address¬ 
ed  it  to  his  Lordship,  which  called  forth  the  reply  which  is  here  sub¬ 
joined. 

Frame ,  Somerset,  November  21  st,  1821. 

To  the  Right  Honourable  Lord  Byron,  Pisa, 

Mr  Lord, — More  than  two  years  since,  a  lovely  and  beloved  wife 
was  taken  from  me,  by  lingering  disease,  after  a  very  short  union.  She 
possessed  unvarying  gentleness  and  fortitude,  and  a  piety  so  retiring,  as 
rarely  to  disclose  itself  in  words  ;  liut  so  influential,  as  to  produce  uni¬ 
form  benevolence  of  conduct.  In  the  last  hour  of  life,  after  a  farewell 
look  on  a  lately  born  and  only  infant,  for  whom  she  had  evinced  inex¬ 
pressible  affection,  her  last  whispers  were,  “  God’s  happiness !  God’s 
happiness!”  Since  the  second  anniversary  of  her  decease,  l  have  read 
some  papers  which  no  one  had  seen  during  her  life,  and  which  contain¬ 
ed  her  most  secret  thoughts.  I  am  induced  to  communicate  to  your 
Lordship  a  passage  from  these  papers,  which  there  is  no  doubt,  refers 
to  yourself ;  as  I  have  more  than  once  heard  the  writer  mention  your 
agility  on  the  rocks  at  Hastings  : — 

“  O  my  God,  I  take  encouragement  from  the  assurance  of  thy  word, 
to  pray  to  Thee  in  behalf  of  one  for  whom  I  have  lately  been  much  in¬ 
terested.  May  the  person  to  whom  I  allude,  (and  who  is  now,  we  fear, 
as  much  distinguished  for  his  neglect  of  Thee,  as  for  the  transcendent 
talents  Thou  hast  bestowed  on  him)  be  awakened  to  a  sense  of  his  own 
danger,  and  led  to  seek  that  peace  of  mind  in  a  proper  sense  of  religion, 
which  he  has  found  this  world’s  enjoyments  unable  to  procure.  Do 
thou  grant  that  his  future  example  may  be  productive  of  far  more  ex¬ 
tensive  benefit,  than  his  past  conduct  and  writings  have  been  of  evil  ; 
and  may  the  Sun  of  Righteousness,  which,  we  trust,  will,  at  some  fu 
ture  period,  arise  upon  him,  be  bright  in  proportion  to  the  darkness  of 
those  clouds  which  guilt  has  raised,  and  soothing  in  proportion  to  the 
keenness  of  that  agony  which  the  punishment  of  his  vices  has  inflicted 
on  him  !  May  the  hope,  that  the  sincerity  of  my  own  efforts  for  the  at¬ 
tainment  of  holiness,  and  the  approval  of  my  own  love  to  the  great 
Author  ofreligion,  will  render  this  prayer,  and  every  other  for  the  wel¬ 
fare  of  mankind,  more  efficacious — cheer  me  in  the  path  of  duty  ;  but 


274 


ATPKIVDrX. 


H  -  s  &gs^. 

gr^SSari^iod^rdL'/'c  CUrl’0U,,  bfUtW,‘ich'  <^ePr've<J  oTthe 
lief  in  the  efficacy* f Chr^  SL\Tf  .r  “,^°ra  ^  firm  be* 

ia  him,  and  really “eel to '  (°r  lh«B ‘vaUon  of*  those  who  trust 

as  barren  °f every  virtue  as  before.JjS,^“  j^SlT  18U  i“V®  US 

this  ehXtraCt’  ;'hlCb’ in  •  ^te'rty  sense, 

asa^e»r^~ 

sion  was  offered  on  ’your  account  t.Th.  ’ my  L°rd  5  for  this  lnte^- 
Jt  from  a  faith  more  confirmed  than  thTof  th^Frenchnoer^d 

^ith,  showed  SfpJwer  £ 
will  hope,  that  a  praver°  which ^d,painS  of  approaching  dissolution.  I 
not  be  always  unavailing.  ^  1  ^  SUre’  Was  dee^  sincerei  may 

hJ'ZolS  "v°“”fori?  uL„ll , lh  V“r  »!*>■  your  se0in! 

his  admiration  of  it  ’  I  had  raiher  h*1  ^  obfpure  lnc*ividual  to  express 

and  pray  that  “wisdom  from  above,  ^ 

enter  such  a  mind.  -  peace,  and  “joy,”  may 


THE  ANSWER. 

~  ,  Pisft>  Dee.  Stfi,  1821. 

£  1  Beri  not,  ,say  "“i  tho 

freling  to  havo  “P*  »  »«»<  of  all 

that  it  was  intended  by  the  writer  forme  vet  ihJ riit ,£0t  <|uite  sLure» 
it  was  written,  with  some  other  cimnm  t’  ^  1  t,le  date,  the  place  where 

larly  striking;  and  1  do  not  know  that  in  the T  momernts  ™ere  Partlcu* 
of  mankind,  and  still  less  in  mv  r thecourse  °f  reading  the  story 

I  ever  met  with  any  thin-.o  uL^tent  t*  T  uP°n  ^  exi‘t,n=  portion, 
the  firm  believers  in  the  r~  ^no.tentatiously  beautiful.  Indisputably 

*r tte" impU  ,Sr,,hg~‘A”",,ge  °Ver  •"  o'ho^ 

■l»«r  ;  a„J  if  ,her„ 7k  „„  LlLjw  Lv  o^'  JT  I1"*  "T"1  h"«- 
bis  eternal  sleep,  having  had  the  assistance  of  ^  ^  nll!\the  1Ilfidel  in 
life,  without  subsequent  disappointment  sinew  10pe  throuol1 

“  out  of  nothing,  nothin-  cau^-ise ”1  (  lhe  W°r?t  °f  them) 

creed  does  not  depend°upon  himwlf-  ;  GVen  sorrow*  Bl,t  a  man's 
that,  or  the  other?  and  leaH  of  all  that  it?  **?’  1  W*®  believe  <his. 

I  have,  however,  observed ttat tlmS  1,6  ^  can  ^Prehend. 

»  JB  “  17  ^MSEE 


APPETv'DIX. 


275 


lief,  like  Maupertuis  and  Henry  Kirke  White.  But  my  business  is  to 
acknowledge  your  letter,  and  not  to  make  a  dissertation.  I  am  obliged 
to  you  tor  your  good  wishes,  and  more  obliged  by  the  extract  from  the 
papers  of  the  beloved  object  whose  qualities  you  have  so  well  described 
in  a  tew  words.  I  can  assure  you,  that  all  the  fame  which  ever  cheated 
humanity  into  h'gher  notions  of  its  own  importance,  would  never  weigh 
on  my  mind  against  the  pure  and  pious  interest  which  a  virtuous  being 
may  be  pleased  to  take  in  my  welfare.  In  this  point  of  view,  I  would 
not.  exchange  the  prayer  ol  the  deceased  in  my  behalf,  for  the  united 
glory  of  Homer,  Cesar  and  Napoleon,  could  such  be  accumulated  upon 
a  living  head.  Do  me  the  justice  to  suppose,  that  “video  meliora 
proboque,”  however  the  “  deteriora  sequor’’  may  have  been  applied 
to  my  conduct.  1  have  the  honour  to  be,  your  obliged  and  obedient 
se.rvant,  BYRON. 

P.S.  I  do  not  know  that  I  am  addressing  a  clergyman  ;  but  I  presume 
that  you  will  not  be  affronted  by  the  mistake,  if  it  is  one  on  the  address 
of  this  letter.  One  who  has  so  well  explained,  and  deeply  felt,  the  doc¬ 
trines  of  religion,  will  excuse  the  error  which  led  me  to  believe  him  its 
minister. 

This  letter,  every  one  will  admit,  exhibits  Lord  Byron  in  a  much 
more  amiable  point  of  view  than  the  traits  of  his  character  sketched  by 
Mr.  Dallas,  prior  to  the  year  1818.  The  following  account  of  his  death¬ 
bed  sentiments  is  extracted  from  “Last  Days  of  Lord  Byron.’ 

A  very  few  days  before  his  Lordship’s  death,  Mr.  Parry,  relates : — 
“  It  was  seven  o’clock  in  the  evening  when  I  saw  him,  and  then  I  took 
a  chair  at  his  request,  and  sat  down  by  his  bed-side,  and  remained  till 
ten  o’clock.  He  sat  up  in  his  bed,  and  was  then  calm  and  collected. 
He  talked  with  me  on  a  variety  of  subjects,  connected  with  himself  and 
his  family.  He  spake  of  death  also  with  great  composure,  and  though  he 
did  not  believe  his  end  was  so  very  near,  there  was  something  about 
him  so  serious  and  so  firm,  so  resigned  and  composed,  so  different  from 
any  thing  I  had  ever  before  seen  in  him,  that  my  mind  misgave,  and  at 
times  foreboded  his  speedy  dissolution.  ‘Parry,’  he  said,  when  I  first 
went  to  him,  ‘  1  have  much  wished  to  see  you  to-day.  1  have  had  most 
strange  feelings,  but  my  head  is  now  better.  I  have  no  gloomy  thoughts, 
and  no  idea  but  I  shall  recover.  I  am  perfectly  collected — 1  am  sure  I 
am  in  my  senses — but  a  melancholy  will  creep  over  me  at  times.’  The 
mention  of  the  subject  brought  the  melancholy  topics  back,  and  a  few 
exclamations  showed  what  occupied  Lord  Byron’s  mind  when  he  was 
left  in  silence  and  solitude.  ‘My  wife!  my  Ada  !  my  country  !  thesitu- 
ation  of  this  place — my  removal  impossible,  and  perhaps  death — all  com¬ 
bine  to  make  me  <?ad.  I  am  convinced  of  the  happiness  of  domestic  life. 
No  man  on  earth  respects  a  virtuous  woman  more  than  I  do;  and  the 
prospect  of  retirement  in  England,  with  my  wife  and  Ada,  gives  me  an 
idea  of  happiness  I  have  never  experienced  before.  Retirement  wrl  be 
every  thing  to  me,  for  heretofore  to  me  life  has  been  like  the  ocean  ir  a 
storm.  You  have  no  conception  of  the  unaccountable  thoughts  which 
come  into  my  mind  when  the  fever  attacks  me. — Eternity  and  space  are 
before  me,  but  on  this  subject,  thank  God,  I  am  happy  and  at  ease. 
The  thought  of  living  eternally,  of  again  reviving,  is  a  great  pleasure. 
Christianity  is  the  purest-and  most  liberal  religion  in  the  world  ;  but  the 
numerous  teachers  who  are  continually  worrying  mankind  with  their  de- 


276 


APPENDIX 


nunciations  and  their  doctrines,  are  the  greatest  enemies  of  reIi<non  I 
have  read  with  more  attention  than  half  of  them  the  Book  of  Christianity 
ana  I  admire  the  liberal  and  truly  charitable  principles  which  Christ  has 
laid  down.  There  are  questions  connected  with  this  subject  which  none 
but  Almighty  God  can  solve.  Time  and  space  who  can  conceive  ?  None 
but  (rod — on  him  I  rely.’  ” 

W  ho  knows  but  the  prayer  of  the  amiable  young  lady,  inserted  above, 
wjas  the  mean  of  leading  his  Lordship  to  indulge  such  sentiments,  and  of 
Ultimately  securing  his  eternal  happiness  !  “  The  effectual  fervent  prayer 
o  a  righteous  man  ayaileth  much.”  This  consideration  should  not  only 
excite  us  to  offer  up  intercessions  in  behalf  of  particular  individuals,  but 
also  to  use  every  prudent  and  delicate  mean— by  conversation,  epistolary 
correspondence  or  otherwise,  to  rouse  the  attention  of  those,  especially 
m  the  higher  circles  of  life,  who  appear  unconcerned  about  “the  thino-’« 
that  relate  to  their  everlasting  peace.”  ° 

found^ntisBible':-3’  "***  ^  L°rd  Byr°n’  are  Said  to  have  bcen 


“  Within  this  awful  volume  lies 
The  mystery  of  mysteries. 

Oh  !  happiest  they  of  human  race, 
To  whom  our  Godfhas  given  grace, 
To  hear,  to  read,  to  fear,  to  pray, 

To  lift  the  latch,  and. force  the  way ; 
But  better  had  they  ne’er  been  born, 
Who  read  to  doubt,  or  read  to  scorn.” 


With  regard  to  Buonaparte,  we  have  nothing  so  satisfactory  as  in  the 
case  of  Byron,  that  might  lead  us  to  conclude  that  his  moral  and  religious 
sentiments  were  changed  for  the  better.  In  his  solitude  of  St.  Hefena 

f*Ter’  lap?' ^fr8  -hat  the  s"bJect  of religion  occasionally  occupied  his  at- 
tentmn.  The  following  anecdote,  extracted  from  Las  Casas’  Journal,  will 
show  the  opinion  which  he  entertained  of  the  morality  of  the  New  Testa- 

frieSdrrs?rHa±rbthe?bject  of  r?!igion,>. which  he  had  ^ 

inenas  at  ist.  Helena,  he  said,  among  other  things,  “  *  How  is  it  Dos=i- 
ble  that  conviction  can  find  its  way  to  our  hearts,  when  we  hear  the  ab 
surd  language,  and  witness  the  acts  of  iniquity  of  the  greatest  number  of 
those  whose  business  it  is  to  preach  to  us?  1  am  surrounded  with  3s  who 
preach  incessantly  that  their  reign  is  not  of  this  world,  and  yet  They  lav 
hands  upon  every  thing  they  can  get.  The  Pope  is.h4  head  ofthaS 

10°  jT  heaven>  a?d  he  thlnks  only  of  this  world  ,’  &c.  The  Emperor 
ended  the  conversation  bv  desiring  my  son  to  bring  him  the  New  Testa 
rnent,  and  taking  it  from  the  beginning,  he  read  £  fa“as  the  conclusirm 

°L  iL7,e/eCJ  °f  JrUS  T  lhe  m0Untain-  He  ^Pressed,  himself  struck  with 
the  highest  admiration  at  the  purity,  the  sublimity,  the  beauty  of  the  morality 
it  contained ,  and  we  all  experienced  the  same  feeling.  V  J  J 


FINIS 


WORKS 

RECENTLY  PUBLISHED  BY  KEY  &  BIDDLE, 

No.  23,  MINOR  STREET. 


MIRIAM,  OR  THE  POWER  OF  TRUTH. 


BY  THE  AUTHOR  OF  “INFLUENCE.” 

This  tale  is  professedly  founded  on  an  “anecdote,  said  to  be  a  well-attested 
fact,  of  an  American  Jew  converted  to  Christianity  by  the  death  of  his  only 
child,  a  beautiful  girl,  whom  he  had  reared  with  no  common  care  and  affection 
She  embraced  the  Christian  faith  unknown  to  her  father,  until  with  her  dying 
lips  she  confessed  to  him  her  apostacy  from  Judaism,  giving  him  at  the  same 
time  a  Testament,  with  a  solemn  injunction  to  believe  in  Jesus  of  Nazareth  ” 

This  outline  is  ingeniously  and  skilfully  filled  up,  and  a  tale  of  deep  interest 
is  produced.  There  are  many  passages  of  deep  pathos,  and  the  argument  for 
Christianity  adapted  to  the  Jews,  is  happily  sustained.  We  think  the  pleasure 
and  instruction  which  the  book  is  calculated  to  afford,  will  well  repay  a  perusal 
—  The  Presbyterian.  J  1 

The  style  of  writing  in  this  volume  is  simple  and  beautiful,  as  the  story  is 
affecting. — Boston  Traveller.  1 

The  book  has  enough  of  fiction  to  enliven  the  fancy  and  gratify  the  curiosity 
of  youth,  who  might  not  otherwise  read  it;  while  it  conveys  lessons  of  piety 
and  arguments  for  the  man  of  understanding.  We  wish  that  many  a  lovely 
Jewess  could  be  persuaded  to  read  “  Miriam.” — The  Philadelphian. 

The  work  altogether  deserves  to  stand  high  in  the  class  of  productions  to 
which  it  belongs. — Episcopal  Recorder. 


When  we  see  a  book  which  bears  the  imprint  of  Key  &  Biddle,  we  are  always 
sure  to  see  a  handsome  one.  In  this  case,  we  can  give  as  high  praise  to  the 
matter  as  we  can  to  the  mechanical  execution. 

“  Influence”  was  one  of  the  very  best  of  that  class  of  religious  novels  lately 
so  prevalent  in  England ;  and  its  gifted  young  author  has  even  improved  upon 
herself,  in  this  affecting  and  powerful  story.  She  has  aken  that  touching  inci¬ 
dent,  well  known  through  the  medium  of  our  tracts,  of  a  Jewish  maiden  who 
on  her  dying  bed,  won  over  her  reluctant  father  to  the  religion  of  the  Jesus  he 
despised. 

It  was  a  subject  too  good  to  be  left  unimproved,  and  in  “Miriam”  has  been 
embalmed,  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and  delicate  religious  narratives  we  have 
ever  read.  No  one  whose  feelings  and  sympathies  are  uncorrupted,  can  peruse 
this  touching  tale,  without  feeling  a  strong  interest,  and  that  sympathy  which 
will  sometimes  melt  them  into  tears.  Upon  the  publication  of  Miriam  in  Lon¬ 
don,  it  quickly  ran  through  three  editions,  and  we  doubt  not  it  will  attain  a 
co-extensive  popularity  here,  where  there  is  more  freshness  of  the  feelings  and 
a  more  deeply  imbued  spirit  of  rational  piety,  to  appreciate  the  fine  tone  of  reli¬ 
gious  spirit  which  pervades  it.— JV.  K.  Com.  Adv. 


AIDS  TO  MENTAL  DEVELOPMENT,  or  Hints  to  Parents. 
Being-  a  System  of  Mental  and  Moral  Instruction,  exemplified  in 
Conversations  between  a  Mother  and  her  Children,  with  an  Address 
to  Mothers.  By  a  Lady  of  Philadelphia. 

A  MANUAL  ON  THE  SABBATH ;  embracing-  a  consideration 
of  its  Perpetual  Obligation,  Change  of  Day,  Utility  and  Duties 
By  John  Holmes  Agnew,  Professor  of  Languages,  Washington  Col¬ 
lege,  Washington,  Pa.  With  an  Introductory  Essay,  by  Dr.  Miller 
of  Princeton,  N.  J. 

COUNSELS  FROM  THE  AGED  TO  THE  YOUNG.  By 
Dr.  Alexander. _  "  3 


WORKS  RECENTLY  PUBLISHED 


THE  PHILOSOPHY  OP  A  FUTURE  STATE.  By  Thomas 
Dick,  author  of  the  Christian  Philosopher,  &c. 

I  ANrTMrp°SNS?NJS  D1£TIONARY  OF  THE  ENGLISH 
EANGUAGE.  To  which  is  added,  a  copious  Vocabulary  of  Greek, 

Latin,  and  Scriptural  Proper  Names,  divided  into  syllables,  and  ac¬ 
cented  for  pronunciation.  By  Thomas  Rees,  LL.D  F  R  S  A  The 

L  vln!"  Mna"y^m  rk,G  a  beautlful  P°cket  ™lume,  same  size 
as  Young-  Man’s  Own  Book. 

i<SSiRa^d^  ?FA  residence  at  the  court  of 

p,  .  ,  ■  By  Richard  Rush,  Envoy  Extraordinary  and  Minister 

Plenipotentmry  from  the  United  States  of  America ;  from  1817  to 
second  edition,  revised  and  enlarged. 

pptARbC«,IAr  LECTURES  ON  THE  LAW  AND  THE  GOS- 
Phikdelphia.  PhGn  '  yng’  ^  ReCt°r  °f  St  Paul’s  Chureh’ 

THE  CHRISTIAN  PHILOSOPHER,  or  the  Connection  of 
Science  and  Philosophy  with  Religion.  By  Thomas  Dick. 

MrmnW  ™0PHY  °F  RFLIGION,  or  an  Illustration  of  the 
Moral  Laws  of  the  Lmverse.  By  Thomas  Dick. 

THE  IMPROVEMENT  OF  SOCIETY,  by  the  Diffusion  of 
Knowledge,  or  an  Illustration  of  the  advantages  which  would  re¬ 
sult  trom  a  general  dissemination  of  rational  and  scientific  informa- 
tion  among  all  ranks  Illustrated  with  engravings.  By  Thomas 
Dick,  LL.D.,  author  of  Philosophy  of  a  Future  State,  &c. 

THE  PIECE  BOOK,  comprising  Choice  Specimens  of  Poetry 
and  Eloquence,  intended  to  be  transcribed  or  committed  to  memory. 

MEMOIRS  OF  HORTENSE  BEAUHARNAIS  DITCHED 
OF  ST.  LEU  AND  EX-QUEEN  OF  HOLLAND.  ’  ESS 

inteJesti"y  account  of  a  conspicuous  character.  She  was  the 
daughter  of  Josephine  Beauharnais,  alias,  or  afterwards,  Josephine  Bommrte 

friel\W,fe  ™apole°n  S(/Fance  ;  and  sbe  became  the  wife  of  Louis  Bonaparte’ 
of  Holland.  Of  those  who  have  figured  at  large  on  the  great  theatre 
of  life,  at  one  of  the  most  memorable  eras  in  history,  many  interesting  aner 

",C‘"n““d  »”'*  >»  »«  I-uUI-  — 

!nLea?iSthhan  thC  a™iabIe.and  accomplished  subject  of  these  memoirs3  Possess¬ 
es  mitwg^hpeT?and  fasclnatl0.n  of  laanner’  which  so  eminently  characterized 
Empress  Josephine,  she  has  a  strength  and  cultivation  of  jntel- 
extent  and  va,rjeiy  of  knowledge;  and  a  philosophic  fortitude  which 
5mP.r„e:is  nav„er  could  boast.  Unhappy  in  her  marriage,  she  was  vet  a  de 
an.<?1fon,d  motber;  and  though  gifted  with  every  quality  30  adorn 
she  vY,1.lllnS,y  withdrew  to  the  shades  of  private  life,  resigning  the  crow  n 
she  had  embellished  without  a  murmur.  fe  b  uwn 

Many  of  the  details  of  this  work  will  be  found  deeply  interesting  and  the  notes 
are  copious  and  instructing.  The  translator  has  faithfully  preserved the Spirit 
of  his  original. — Saturday  Courier.  1  p  11 


BY  KEY  &  BIDDLE. 

HARPE’S  HEAD, 

A  LEGEND  OF  KENTUCKY. 

By  James  Hall,  Esq.  author  of  Legends  of  the  West,  &c.  &c. 

It  is  an  able  production,  characteristic  of  the  writer’s  eminent  talents,  and 
abounding  with  narratives  and  sketches  of  absorbing  interest.  The  history  of 
Harpe  forms  the  ground-work  of  the  tale,  the  incidents  of  which  are  developed 
with  much  skill  and  effect. — Philad.  Gazette. 

Harpe’s  Head  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  stories  with  which  we  are  ac¬ 
quainted. — Daily  Chronicle. 

Judge  Hall  is  among  the  most  popular  of  American  writers,  and  in  the  present 
production,  has  given  another  proof  of  the  felicity  of  his  genius.  It  abounds 
with  narratives  and  sketches  of  deep  interest,  relating  to  the  early  periods  of 
the  settlement  of  Kentucky. — JV.  Y.  Com.  Adv. 

Mr.  James  Hall,  a  native  of  Philadelphia,  and  favorably  known  as  the  author 
of  Legends  of  the  West,  has  just  published  a  new  work,  entitled  “  Harpe’s 
Head,  A  Legend  of  Kentucky.”  It  is  well  calculated  to  add  to  his  fame,  and 
though  it  bears  evidences  of  being  a  hasty  composition,  reflects  great  credit 
upon  the  author.  It  is  the  story  of  Micajah  Harpe,  a  Kentuckian  Freebooter, 
and  the  scene  changes  from  Virginia,  in  the  olden  time,  to  Ohio  and  Kentucky. 
The  account  of  a  Virginia  Barbecue  is  so  well  and  naturally  executed,  that  it 
must  become  a  favorite.  It  is  here  inserted  as  a  favorable  specimen  of  the  work. 
Miss  Pendleton  is  altogether  lovely. — Poulson's  Daily  Adv. 

With  the  ordinary  characters  which  must  be  found  in  such  a  composition,  we 
have  one  quite  original  being,  in  the  person  of  “  Hark  Short,  the  snake-killer;” 
and  the  production,  as  a  whole,  forms  one  of  the  most  engaging  volumes  that 
we  have  met  with.  To  its  other  merits  we  should  not  omit  to  add  that,  like 
other  writings  from  the  same  pen,  it  is  distinguished  by  an  unobtrusive  tone  of 
the  purest  moral  sentiment. — Penn.  Inquirer. 

We  cheerfully  commend  this  work  to  the  attention  of  our  readers,  assuring 
them  that  they  will  be  amused,  entertained,  and  instructed  by  its  perusal — they 
will  find  Indian  warfare, — savage  modes  of  life — the  difficulties  and  dangers 
experienced  by  the  early  pioneers  in  the  “far,  far  west” — delineated  with  a 
master  hand,  in  language  glowing,  vivid,  and  natural. — National  Banner. 


WACOUSTA,  OR  THE  PROPHECY ; 

A  Tale  of  the  Canadas.  2  vols. 

This  work  is  of  a  deeply  interesting  character,  and  justly  lays  claim  to  be  of 
the  highest  cast.  We  think  it  decidedly  superi  v  to  any  production  of  the  kind 
which  has  recently  emanated  from  the  press.  It  abounds  with  thrilling  scenes, 
and  the  author  has  displayed  a  power  of  delineation  rarely  surpassed. — Daily  In¬ 
telligencer. 

We  have  read  it,  and  unhesitatingly  pronounce  it  one  of  the  most  deeply  in¬ 
teresting  works  of  fiction  which  has  met  our  eye  for  many  a  month.  It  is  a  his¬ 
torical  novel — the  scenes  of  which  are  laid  principally  at  Detroit  and  Mackina 
— and  some  of  the  tragic  events  which  those  places  witnessed  in  the  early  settle¬ 
ment  of  the  country,  are  given  with  historic  accuracy — particularly  the  mas¬ 
sacre  of  Mackina.— The  author  is  evidently  conversant  with  Indian  stratagem 
and  with  Indian  eloquence  ;  and  has  presented  us  with  specimens  of  both,  truly 
characteristic  of  the  untutored  savage.  We  would  gladly  present  our  readers 
with  an  extract  from  this  interesting  work,  did  our  limits  permit.  In  lieu  of  an 
extract,  however,  we  commend  the  work  itself  to  them. — Commercial  Herald. 

The  principal  personage  of  this  novel  is  a  savage  chief,  and  the  story  of  his 
retreat,  bearing  off  captive  the  daughter  of  the  Governor,  is  told  with  thrilling 
effect.  It  is  well  written  throughout,  and  abounds  With  interesting  scenes.— 
Com.  Adv. 

THE  YOUNG  LADY’S  SUNDAY  BOOK; 

A  Practical  Manual  of  the  Christian  Duties  of  Piety,  Benevo¬ 
lence,  and  Self-government.  Prepared  with  particular  reference 


a 


WORKS  RECES?TL-2'  PUBLISHED 


i 


to  the  Formation  of  the  Female  Character.  By  the  author  of  “  The 
Young1  Man’s  Own  Book.”  Philadelphia.  Key  &  Biddle.  1833 
32mo.  pp.  312. 

nnThfn«aAhiI^ad  mh?y  tho  se,ections  in  tin's  little  volume,  and  have  met  with 
notlung  objectionable— Generally,  the  style  is  pure,  easy,  and  pleasing  and  the 
matter  good,  well  calculated  for  the  purpose  for  which  the  work  is  intended 

e d '  aT nmtfr^hlp  f  recmi"ne,nd  il  t0  the  persons  for  whom  it  is  principally  design- 
eu,  as  profitable  tor  instruction. — Episcopal  Recorder.  ® 

A  most  attractive  little  volume  in  its  appearance— and  in  this  a<*e  of  swepning 
s uch  mnyn,n  .ltclafure-.of'  tar  superior  excellence  in  its  contents  CmLnTy  sonrn 
required  for  the  closet— when  novels  and  light  reading  of  every 
description  have  so  ruled  paramount  in  the  drawing-room.  We  can  give  it  no 

than  to  say  that  the  extracts  are  of  a  character  to  accomplish  all 
that  the  title-page  holds  out.— JV.  Y.  Com.  Mv.  p 

ticularl^tnThP  fnrmgfllentpse.?ticentf  from  aPPr0'Ted  authors,  and  adapted  par- 
ticulariy  to  the  formation  of  the  female  character.  The  chapters  are  short  and 

embrace  a  great  variety  of  subjects  of  religious  tendency,  and  altogether  the 

byterianePltite  WUh instructlon-  is  illustrated  by  two  pretty  engravings.— Prcs- 

wedf  hvethP,>  efrorfi1!2  .now.rt".ns-  the  Publishers  of  this  little  work  have  done 
n®!!  ^  *  ’eir  ^ort  to  keep  it  in  a  proper  channel.  The  Young  Lady’s  Sunday 

nioroOIS«alt0get lle.r  Practica!  in. its  character,  and  consisting,  as  it  does,  of  short 
pieces,  takes  a  wide  range  m  its  subjects. 

JLiSi^Ulate.d.  l°  ll°  go,od’  and  we  should  be  happy  to  see  the  principles  incul- 
anrf  7’e"e^rapA°rtl°nS  W6  ’aVe  read  becolne  the  ruli»g  principles  of  all.—  Journal 

e m! ihA %’t'  v!  ,B ‘ 'r  ® J1 ? V  o j "  s  1  iss«ed  a  volume  of  the  most  beautiful  kind, 
Youn^,La^y  f  Sunday  Book.  It  is  full  of  pure,  didactic  matter,  the 
fruits  of  a  pious  and  gifted  mind  ;  and  while  the  clearness  and  light  of  its  pa^es 
commend  then,  to  the  eye,  the  truth  of  the  precepts  finds  its  way  to  the  heart 
Cal'  c6  P11  hesitatingly  praised,  as  worthy  in  all  respects.  The  embel¬ 
lishments  are  finished  and  tasteful.  “  Meditation ,”  the  frontispiece,  from  the 

rereTud^rh'6’’  V°U  .d  add  a  grace  t0  ally  annual.  We  trust  Messrs.  Key  &  Biddle 
hnnt=Vna  ''bet®1. patronage  Irom  the  religious  communitv,  for  we  know  of  no 
booksellers  in  this  country  who  issue  more  good  volumes  calculated  to  subserve 
the  immortal  interests  of  man.— Philad.  Gaz.  fcuuserve 


TRANSATLANTIC  SKETCHES, 

Comprising  visits  to  the  most  interesting  scenes  in  North  America, 
and  the  West  Indies,  with  Notes  on  Negro  Slavery  and  Canadian 
Emigration.  By  Capt.  J.  E.  Alexander,  42d  Royal  Highlanders, 
r .  K.  G.  S.  M.  R.  A.  S.  &c.  author  of  Travels  in  Ava,  Persia,  &c. 

We  are  happy  to  have  the  opportunity  afforded  us  of  noticing  such  a  book  of 
travels  as  that  called  Transatlantic  Sketches  —American  Sentinel 

Une  ot  the  most  interesting  and  instructive  works  that  has  appeared  for  some 

°f  K*^  entitled  Transit 

VVe  wish  we  had  room  to  speak  of  this  volume  according  to  our  high  opinion 
of  its  merit,  and  to  make  the  reader  acquainted  with  the  style  and  spirit  of  the 
writer,  by  presenting  some  extracts.  Captain  Alexander,  as  a  narrator  of  what 
he  sees  and  hears,  has  hit  our  taste  exactly.  We  do  not  feel  like  a  reader,  but 
a  fellow-traveller  not  in  company  with  a  dull,  prosing  fellow,  but  with  a  gen- 
'fe  u  sPint’  of  wit  and  learning.  Upon  the  whole,  we  commend  the 
book  to  the  public,  as  one  of  the  very  best  of  the  numerous  recent  publications 
of  travels  that  have  been  sent  forth.— Com.  Herald.  p  ons 


THE  RELIGIOUS  SOUVENIR; 

A  Christmas,  New-Year’s,  and  Birth-Day  Present  for  1834. 
Edited  by  G.  T.  Bedell,  D.D.,  illustrated  with  eight  splendid  steel 
engravings. 


4 


BIT  KEY  &  BIDDLE. 


A  volume,  too,  which  does  not  degrade  or  disgrace  the  subject — a  volume  des¬ 
tined,  not  to  pass  away  with  the  winter-greens  that  adorn  our  Christmas  par¬ 
lors,  but  to  maintain  a  lasting  hold  on  the  attention  of  the  Christian  community, 
at  least  so  long  as  good  taste  and  good  sense  shall  have  any  vote  in  the  selec¬ 
tion  of  books.  We  have  read  the  volume  carefully,  and  do  not  hesitate  to  pro¬ 
nounce  it  one  of  unusual  interest  as  well  as  solid  merit. —  U.  S.  Gazette. 

Messrs.  Key  &  Biddle  hav«  made  a  valuable  present  to  religious  parents, 
guardians,  and  friends,  in  this  elegant  little  volume.  Why  should  all  our  gifts 
on  these  occasions  be  worldly,  or  worse  ?  And  why  should  religious  truth  always 
shun  the  aids  of  beautiful  ornament?  The  embellishments  are  attractive,  well 
selected,  and  well  executed.  The  various  papers  which  compose  the  volume  are 
serious,  tasteful,  alluring,  imbued  with  the  spirit  of  the  gospel,  in  a  word,  such 
as  we  should  have  expected  from  one  so  zealous  for  the  cause  of  Christ,  and  so 
inventive  of  happy  thoughts  as  the  Rev.  Editor.  This  annual  may  be  safely 
recommended  to  the  Christian  public. — The  Presbyterian. 

To  all,  therefore,  who  desire  intellectual  improvement,  and,  at  the  same  time, 
the  gratification  of  a  true  taste — and  to  all  who  would  make  a  really  valuable 
present  to  their  friends,  we  would  say,  in  conclusion,  go  and  procure  the  Reli¬ 
gious  Souvenir.  It  is  not  merely  a  brilliant  little  ornament  for  the  parlor  centre- 
table,  but'  a  book  worthy  of  a  place  in  every  sensible  man’s  library. — Cincin¬ 
nati  Inquirer. 

The  typography,  embellishments,  and  general  appearance  of  the  work,  render 
it  fully  equal  in  these  respects  to  any  of  the  kind  published  in  our  country,  while 
its  subjects  are  far  more  suitable  for  the  contemplation  of  Christians,  than  the 
light  reading  with  which  most  of  them  are  filled. — Episcopal  Recorder. 

The  articles  are  not  only  interesting,  but  calculated  to  produce  a  beneficial 
effect  upon  the  minds  of  those  who  read  it,  therefore,  a  very  proper  work  for  the 
purpose  for  which  it  is  designed,  and  hope  it  may  meet  with  an  extensive  sale. — 

Baltimore  Republican. 

In  the  general  character  of  those  fashionable,  and  as  to  appearance,  attractive 
volumes,  the  annuals,  there  is  so  much  that  is  trashy  and  unprofitable,  that  it 
was  with  no  little  misgiving  we  looked  into  the  pages  of  one  which  is  now  be¬ 
fore  us,  entitled  “  The  Religious  Souvenir.”  The  matter  is  altogether  of  a  reli¬ 
gious  and  moral  tendency,  not  chargeable  with  sectarian  bias,  and  such  as  the 
most  scrupulous  need  not  hesitate  to  admit  into  family  reading. — The  Friend. 

This  little  work  is  intended  to  furnish  what  was  heretofore  wanted — a  Christ¬ 
mas  and  New  Year’s  offering,  which  may  be  bestowed  and  accepted  by  the  most 
scrupulous. — Pittsburg  Gazette. 

We  are  happy  to  announce  the  tasteful  appearance  and  valuable  matter  of  the 
Religious  Souvenir  for  1834.  Dr.  Bedell  is  as  much  distinguished  for  his  belles- 
lettres  attainment,  as  for  the  profoundness  of  his  scholarship  and  the  purity  of 
his  motives.  He  has  found  himself  at  home  in  this  tasteful  enterprise,  and  in 
good  company  with  the  associated  talent  of  the  contributors  to  his  beautiful 
pages. — N.  Y.  Weekly  Messenger. 

Messrs.  Key  &  Biddle  have  published  a  handsome  little  volume,  entitled  Reli¬ 
gious  Souvenir,  and  edited  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Bedell.  It  is  embellished  with  beau¬ 
tiful  engravings,  and  printed  with  elegance.  The  literary  contents  are  very 
good,  soundly  pious,  and  free  of  all  invidious  remark  or  allusion.  True  Chris¬ 
tianity  is  that  which  purifies  the  heart,  liberalizes  the  feelings,  and  amends  the 
conduct. — National  Gazette. 

We  are  free  to  confess  our  admiration  of  this  lovely  volume.  It  is  decidedly 
the  gem  of  the  year.  Not  only  unquestionably  superior  in  elegance  and  execu¬ 
tion  to  all  others  of  its  class  published  in  this  country,  but  worthy  in  the  fine 
and  careful  finish  of  the  admirable  engravings,  to  rank  along  with  the  best  of 
those  annually  produced  by  the  finished  artists  and  abounding  capital  of  Eng 
land.  We  hope  an  unprecedented  patronage  will  remunerate  the  spirited  pub¬ 
lishers  for  producing,  at  such  a  liberal  expense,  a  work  not  less  creditable  to 
themselves  than  to  the  state  of  art  in  the  country.— N.  Y.  Com.  Adv. 

We  hail  with  pleasure  the  second  appearance  of  this  judicious  instructive  an¬ 
nual,  with  its  exterior  much  improved,  and  its  interior  rich  in  lessons  of  piety. 
Its  aim  is  hallowed — its  usefulness  unquestionable— and  it  is  a  gift  which  affec¬ 
tion  may  offer  without  scruple,  because  approved  by  religion. — Charleston  Cour. 


j  — - WORKS  MCiafTlY  PUBLISHED 

LETTERS  TO  AN  ANXIOUS  INQUIRER 

BY  T.  CARLTON  HENRY,  D  D 
WithTC  A  t]:  PreSbyteri3n  Church'  Charleston,  S.  C. 

Preface  to  his  Otters, "and" 

I?;:  !  °r  0f  St- And^w’S  Church, yphiladelphify  BedeI1’ 

^SS^SSS^^S  BL  °B  ^  “iSJS 

ful.'an^was^ed^to^eek'ltsrepublic^lkm'in^rh6’  ^  B?de"  fo,,nd  »>is  work  use- 
tage  of  those  who  cannot  afford  to  nnrrho  *  an(l  neat  form,  for  the  advan 

SK hope  the  work 

appropriate  instructs  for  ^hiSf 

THE  SOLDIER’S  BRIDE,  AND  OTHER  TALES 

By  James  Hall,  Esq.  author  of  “  Legends  of  the  West,  &c. 

Village  Scher’;— 3 eEmttyepock”ts^2Th°Ur  n  LuCy  and  the 
5.  The  Philadelphia  Dun -P  fi  -T?  S ’~4‘  T,he  CaPtain’s  Lady 
Village  Mu^cian^-^^Fashitmabl^W6^ °^I^lsPatc^es 5 — 7. ^The 
Useful  Man ; — 10.  The  Dentist^— LI  The 

12w  Pete  Featherton  ;-13.  The  Bdliard  Table  ^  ®  JS1Um 

leaves  ^t^xm*  the  mind  isTkehtharwhfch^refeiv^f  ®  Bri2°-  Tlle  imPression  it 
mate  purpose  of  fiction the ^elevation  ofThJ  ,°S?  of  the  t™e  and  logiti- 

KSvK’rtt*6  hiS  fUl1  Share  t0  tPe  creation^oflgoundbam{:thea?thfuI 

Bride  &c.  by  Jame^HalT^T1^  nf  Tales— the  Soldier’s 

Legends  of  the  West,  has  secured  a  favorable  _  ^where  elicited  by  Judge  Hall  s 

tPheSenMday’  When  the  Bterary  world  is  flooded  withnfn^  aSSieal,WriTer-  ^At  'ihe 
the  pubhc  taste  attempted  to  be  vitiated  by  the  weak  an.d  nLS,f,i<lll.V.  and 

.  fhose  whose  minds  are  as  incanahle  of  inn,,  ,  ®,1(1  eflemmate  productions 
ings  they  would  pourtray,  as  their  hearts  are  of  —  n("'-v  an<l  ?pnerous  feel- 

gratifying  to  receive  a  work, from  the ^  r  ages  of  which  *,?  th<5ra’  "  IS  Peeuliariy 

,h,  f0„„  ,1,1,  ,VUT 

TALES  OF  ROMANCE,  FIRST  SERIES. 

mists  not  only  an  uncommonly  neat  edition  i,,,t  „ 

5S50--  »■'«"  u 

— Thi^worl^contiiin,  Alt',  Brido,  a  late  ta,  Pmla,  by  Mom 

6 


BY  KEY  &  BIDDLE. 


terspersed  with  poetry.  The  Last  of  the  Line,  by  Mrs.  S.  C.  Hall,  an  author  who 
sustains  a  reputation  which  every  succeeding  production  greatly  enhances.  The 
Wire  Merchant’s  Story,  by  the  author  of  the  King’s  Own.  The  Procrastinator, 
by  T.  Crofton  Croker.  The  Spanish  Beadsman.  The  Legend  of  Rose  Rocke,  by 

the  author  of  Stories  of  Waterloo.  Barbara  S - ,  by  Charles  Lamb.  A 

Story  of  the  Heart.  The  Vacant  Chair,  by  J.  M.  Wilson  ;  and  the  Queen  of  the 
Meadows,  by  Miss  Mitford. 

This  volume  has  no  pretensions  to  the  inculcation  of  mawkish  sensibility. 
We  have  read  every  word  of  it,  and  can  confidently  recommend  it  to  our  friends. 
— Journal  of  Belles  Leltres. 


ZOE,  OR  THE  SICILIAN  SAYDA. 

As  an  historical  romance,  embellished  with  the  creations  of  a  lively  imagina¬ 
tion,  and  adorned  with  the  beauties  of  a  classic  mind,  this  production  will  take 
a  high  rank,  and  although  not  so  much  lauded  as  a  Cooper  or  an  Irving,  he  may 
be  assured  that  by  a  continuance  of  his  efforts,  he  will  secure  the  approbation 
of  his  countrymen,  and  the  reward  of  a  wide-spread  fame. — Daily  Intelligencer. 

We  do  not  call  attention  to  this  on  account  of  any  previous  reputation  of  its 
author;  it  possesses  intrinsic  merit,  and  will  obtain  favor  because  it  merits  it. 
It  is  historical,  and  the  name  and  circumstances  are  to  be  found  in  the  records 
of  those  times.  The  plot  is  ably  conceived,  the  characters  are  vividly,  and  some 
are  fearfully  drawn. — Boston  American  Traveller. 

THE  TESTIMONY  OF  NATURE  AND  REVELATION  TO 
THE  BEING,  PERFECTIONS,  AND  GOVERNMENT  OF 
GOD.  By  the  Rev.  Henry  Fergus,  Dunfermline,  author  of  the 
History  of  the  United  States  of  America,  till  the  termination  of 
the  War  of  Independence,  in  Lardner’s  Cyclopedia. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Fergus’s  Testimony  of  Nature  and  Revelation  to  the  Being, 
Perfection,  and  Government  of  God,  is  an  attempt  to  do  in  one  volume  what  the 
Bridgewater  Treatises  are  to  do  in  eight.  We  wish  one-eighth  of  the  reward 
only  may  make  its  way  to  Dunfermline.  Mr.  Fergus’s  Treatise  goes  over  the 
whole  ground  with  fervor  and  ability;  it  is  an  excellent  volume,  and  may  be 
had  for  somewhere  about  about  half  ihe  price  of  one  Bridgewater  octavo. — Lon¬ 
don  Spectator. 

A  work  of  great  research  and  great  talent. — Evangelical  Magazine. 

A  very  seasonable  and  valuable  work.  Its  philosophy  is  unimpeachable,  and 
its  theology  pure  and  elevated. — J Yew  Monthly  Mag. 

This  is  an  elegant  and  enlighted  work,  of  a  pious  and  highly  gifted  man. — 
Metropolitan  Magazine. 

This  excellent  work  contains,  in  a  brief  space,  all  that  is  likely  to  be  useful  in 
the  Bridgewater  Treatises,  and  displays  infinitely  more  of  original  thought  and 
patient  research,  than  the  two  volumes  which  have  been  recently  published  by 
the  managers  of  his  lordship’s  legacy.  We  have  never  seen  any  work  in  which 
the  necessity  of  a  revelation  was  more  clearly  demonstrated,  while  at  the  same 
time  its  due  importance  was  assigned  to  natural  religion. 

We  hope  thSt  the  work  will  be  extensively  used  in  the  education  of  youth ;  it 
is  admirably  calculated  to  stimulate  students  to  scientific  research,  and  the  ob¬ 
servation  of  Nature;  it  suggests  subjects  of  contemplation,  by  which  the  mind 
must  be  both  delighted  and  instructed  ;  and,  finally,  it  teaches  the  most  sublime 
of  all  lessons,  admiration  of  the  power,  delight  in  the  wisdom,  and  gratitude  for 
the  love  of  our  Creator. — Athenaeum. 

LETTERS  FROM  THE  NORTH  OF  EUROPE, 

Or  Journal  of  Travels  in  Holland,  Denmark,  Norway,  Sweden, 
Finland,  Russia,  Prussia,  and  Saxony.  By  Charles  B.  Elliott,  Esq. 

This  is  one  of  those  remarkably  pleasant  tours  which  an  intelligent  gentle¬ 
man,  who  has  seen  much  of  the  world,  is  alone  calculated  to  write — one  of  those 
productions  which  engage  the  attention  and  do  not  fatigue  it,  and  which  we 
read  from  first  to  last  with  the  agreeable  sensation,  that  we  are  gathering  the 
information  of  very  extensive  travel  easily,  by  our  own  fireside. — London  Lite¬ 
rary  Gazette. 


7 


a  ^  young  man’s  own  book 

SfSgS=3»SSHS 

S ®aSss^a£sSfia«£ 

s=ffissK£a  -*“ « »« -S^jKSEar,  ™; 

YOUNG  LADY’S  OWN  BOOK 

BLSl aathor°«f Yoing  Man’s  Own  Book  DePortment- 

&b™ 

have  been  carefully  prepared  to 

Tbe  vC“S oi,h  rS  aW 0  «£ 

be^in  the  hands  of  every  you? kmalf -i^rer.  beautiM  engravings,  should 
character.— AT.'k  Com.^Jdv^  Lady’S  °Wn  Book  are  of  a  useful  and  interesting 

ANCE  OFDR|lSIGION.TIBy  tohnF^  °N  ,THE*IMpORT- 
Decision  of  Character,  &c.  '  ter’  aut  lor  of  Essays  on 

mean  tTte^fwh’at’fs^iJftent'18' It' 'il^n  S  *°  t  b°°k  °f  Joh"  Foster's  but  only 

be  n^^oubfas^o  h3°cu’rren°y.— ^ebp^^^^llp<^rson*a'|are!igjon^  The? cam 

Teferp^ER’SFffiSTTHOUOHTS.Bythe.uthorof 

“Faith’s 

Religious  Meditatio1ns,aprayers,0and  DMmtionnf^p6'*'1'0?’  Its  ai,n  is  to  furnish 
most  highly  commended  in  the  Edinbnro-h°  p  ?i?etry  for  Pious  mothers  It  is 
Christian  Advocate.  The  author  5ftn  i,  iPreib/lerian  Review,  arid  in  fi  e 
_edgeofsound  theology,  with  no  ordinaryJie'ln  adt;e.P  kn^-j 


BY  KEY  &  BIDDLE. 


EXAMPLE;  OR,  FAMILY  SCENES. 

This  is  one  of  those  useful  and  truly  moral  publications  which  can  not  fail  to 
be  read  with  delight  by  the  youth  of  both  sexes,  who,  as  their  hearts  expand, 
and  they  advance  in  years,  have  need  of  some  instructor  to  point  out  the  path 
they  should  follow  for  their  future  happiness.  The  author  has  been  triumphantly 
successful  in  attaining  these  laudable  objects  in  this  interesting  publication.— 
Weekly  Times. 

Some  of  the  1  Scenes’  are  sweetly  touching,  and,  in  our  view,  the  author  has 
succeeded  remarkably  well  in  presenting  the  sublime  and  yet  simple  truths  of 
Evangelical  Religion  to  the  mind  in  a  way  of  deep  and  abiding  impressions. — 
J\T.  Y.  Com.  Ado . 

True  religion  is  diffusive  in  its  character,  and  when  it  is  fairly  exemplified  in 
the  life  of  an  individual,  it  will  excite  attention,  command  respect,  and  perhaps 
lead  to  still  happier  results.  *  Let  your  light  so  shine  before  men  that  they  may 
see  your  good  works,  and  glorify  your  Father  which  is  in  heaven,’  is  a  command 
of  high  authority,  and  one  which  presupposes  the  force  of  example.  These 
‘  Family  Scenes,’  which  belong  to  the  same  class  with  Mrs.  Sherw'ood’s  writings, 
are  intended  to  illustrate  the  influence  of  example.  The  book  is  pleasingly  writ¬ 
ten,  and  is  characterized  by  a  vein  of  pious  and  evangelical  sentiment. — Presby¬ 
terian. 


A  HARMONY  OF  THE  FOUR  GOSPELS, 

Founded  on  the  Arrangement  of  the  Harmonia  Evangelica,  by 
the  Rev.  Edward  Greswell.  With  the  Practical  Reflections  of  Dr. 
Doddridge.  Designed  for  the  use  of  Families  and  Schools,  and  for 
Private  Edification.  By  the  Rev.  E.  Bickersteth,  Rector  of  Wolton, 
Herts. 

A  beautiful  duodecimo  of  about  four  hundred  pages;  and  one  of  the  best 
books  which  has  appeared  for  many  years,  with  respect  to  personal  and  domestic 
edification.  It  is  next  to  impossible  to  read  the  ordinary  Harmonies.  The  cur¬ 
rent  of  the  narrative  is  broken  by  constant  interruptions.  In  this ,  we  have  in 
convenient  sections,  the  four  Gospel  histories,  made  up  into  one,  in  proper  order, 
in  the  words  of  the  common  English  translation.  The  devotional  notes  of 
Doddridge  are  better  than  any  we  have  seen  for  reading  in  the  closet,  or  at  family 
worship.  The  name  of  Bickersteth ,  prefixed  to  a  book,  is  enough  to  show  that 
it  is  written  simply  to  serve  the  cause  of  Christ. —  The  Presbyterian. 


THE  SPIRIT  OF  LIFE. 

A  Poem,  pronounced  before  the  Franklin  Society  of  Brown  Uni¬ 
versity,  Sept.  3,  1833.  With  other  Poems.  By  Willis  Gaylord 
Clark,  Esq. 

We  hope  Mr.  Clark  may  find  sufficient  inducements  to  place  before  the  public, 
in  a  more  accessible  form  than  that  in  which  they  are  now  scattered  through 
the  periodicals  of  the  day,  more  of  the  creations  of  his  fancy,  breathing  as  they 
do  the  fervor  of  moral  purity,  as  well  as  chastened  and  beautiful  poetry — we  do 
not  hesitate  to  say  they  will  be  most  highly  acceptable.  The  anonymous  pro¬ 
ductions  of  his  pen  have  long  attracted  the  highest  praise,  and  it  is  high  time 
that  he  should,  in  his  own  person,  reap  the  laurels  he  has  so  well  earned,  and 
boldly  challenge  a  rank  among  the  best  of  the  American  poets. — N.  Y.  Mirror. 

The  “  Spirit  of  Life”  is  a  clustering  of  many  of  those  beauties,  which  all,  who 
admire  poetry,  have  already  seen  and  applauded  in  the  different  productions  of 
Clark’s  gifted  mind. —  U.  S.  Oaz. 

This  poetry  is  of  no  common  order.  The  author  beautifully  describes  the  Spirit 
of  Life  as  pervading  all  Nature,  and  triumphing  over  the  power  of  death. — 
Episcopal  Recorder. 

The  “  Spirit  of  Life”  is  an  essay  of  sound  morality,  in  the  guise  of  smooth 
and  easy  versification.  It  aims  by  graceful  numbers  to  better  the  heart;  to  teach 
it  contentment  here  below. — Poulson’s  Daily  Adv. 


9 


WORKS  RBCUFTLY  PUBLISHED 


THE  HAPPINESS  OF  THE  BLESSED, 

CGnsidered  as  to  the  particulars  of  their  state;  their ’recognition 
of  each  other  in  that  state;  and  its  difference  of  degrees.  To  which 

Sant  D  D  ttK  A.  trd  Sp^f  Dow^Lno? 

erratically  denominated  the  children  of  God^Vhe' author7 has 
gtaounds°of  °hisbtfaUhnd  ^  “  to  the  state  of  his 

wri  Ur  Reserves1  weJl'o^the'c'hristi  an^nquirer,  fo^he^indu  "ti^which  has  d  ^ 

played  in  collecting  and  arranging  so  many  important  and  vninnMo  6  lla!>  dls‘ 
of  JeZs  °f  the  8,°ri0US  and  feSPlendent  s‘aL  oAhe  faithful  MibffSSlB 

In  this  world,  niBiikind  have  need  of  consolation _ nf  tho  r.r 

but  this  state  of  things  was  designed  by  our  Creator  for  our  hpnffit  ,r*rasP 
and  zeal,  for  a  state,  beyond  the  grave,  of  felicity,  which  eve  hath’ not ^een1’1"6 

~*ssasu» 

«  z  ss  3  ars 

practical  effects  they  may  assist  in  producing  ace  Vs  a ^  caU  thus  e^r 
ptibhc  attention  to  a  work,  small  indeed  in  size,  but  which  is  calculated  LA 
little  to  inform  all  candid  and  serious  inquirers  into  a  subject  hUherro  ^  ,  1  ^ 
tn  much  obscurity,  but  not  a  little  elucidated  by  the  present  author-G^".  ^ 

MEMOIR  OF  MISS  MARY  JANE  GRAHAM. 

By  the  Rev.  Charles  Bridges,  M.  A.  author  of  Christian  Min¬ 
istry,  <fcc.  &c. 

We  have  seldom  read  a  biographical  sketch  which  we  could  more  cordiallv  nr 
confidently  recommend  to  the  Christian  reader.  The  highlv  gifted Tccomnfished 
and  spir.tually-minded  subject  of  the  work  has  found  f  kindre.l  spfrTt“n  the  tx’ 
cellent  author.  He  has  used  his  valuable  materials  in  such  a  manner  as  to  ren- 
der  the  memoir  of  Miss  Graham  not  less  rich  in  interest  than  full  of  instruction 
to  a!  who  are  capable  of  being  interested  in  the  highest  mental  endowments’ 
sanctified  and  set  apart  to  the  service  of  God.  There  are  few,  either  believers 
or  unbelievers,  who  may  not  be  instructed  by  the  counsel,  or  benefited  bv  the 
example  of  Miss  Graham. — Episcopal  Recorder .  ^ 

In  many  respects  it  is  one  of  the  richest  pieces  of  biography  with  which  we 
are  acquainted. — Presbyterian.  t>  v  v  nmcn  we 

TALES  OF  ROMANCE,  SECOND  SERIES. 

The  Tales  of  Romance,  which  Messrs.  Key  &  Biddle  have  just  published  are 
altogether  above  the  ordinary  collections  of  the  day.  Every  author  'included 
among  the  contributors  to  the  volume,  has  acquired  previously  a  distinct  remits 
tion  in  other  works.  Such  names  as  Malcolm,  Roscoe,  and  others  will  be  snffi 
cient  to  give  an  idea  of  the  merits  of  these  Tales.  The  story  of  Fazio  from 
whence  is  derived  the  tragedy  of  that  name,  is  well  and  concisely  told  We  shall 
present  the  best  part  of  it  soon,  to  the  readers  of  the  Intelligencer.— Daily  Intel 


10 


BY  KEY  &  BIDDLE. 


GENERAL  VIEW  OF  THE  GEOLOGY  OF  SCRIPTURE, 

In  which  the  unerring  truth  of  the  Inspired  Narrative  of  the 
early  events  in  the  world  is  exhibited,  and  distinctly  proved,  by  the 
corroborative  testimony  of  physical  facts,  on  every  part  of  the 
earth’s  surface.  By  George  Fairholme,  Esq. 

The  work  before  us  is  admirably  calculatsd  to  enlighten  the  mind  upon  the 
subject  of  Creation,  and  we  have  rarely  perused  a  work  which  has  added  so  much 
to  our  stock  of  ideas,  or  which  has  given  so  much  gratification.  If  the  limits  of 
our  paper  permitted,  we  should  take  pleasure  in  laying  before  our  readers  an 
analysis  of  the  contents  of  this  excellent  production,  but  as  that  is  out  of  the 
question,  we  must  refer  them  to  the  work  itself,  where  we  can  assure  them  they 
will  find  an  abundance  of  information  on  the  important  subject  of  Creation. — 
Phil.  Gaz. 

The  Geology  of  Scripture,  by  George  Fairholme,  Esq.  is  an  admirable  work. 
The  circulation  of  it  should  be  extensive;  and,  judging  from  its  intrinsic  merit, 
such  is  its  destiny. — Christian  Gazette. 


LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  COWPER,  ESQ. 

Compiled  from  his  correspondence  and  other  authentic  sources 
of  information,  containing  remarks  on  his  writings,  and  on  the 
peculiarities  of  his  interesting  character,  never  before  published. 
By  Thomas  Taylor. 

Taylor’s  Life  of  Cowper  has  several  private  letters  of  the  poet  not  found  in 
other  works,  which  serve  to  correct  many  false  impressions  relative  to  his  men¬ 
tal  aberration.  It  is  due  the  cause  of  humanity,  and  of  justice  generally,  that 
the  truth  should  be  received  ;  especially  when,  by  affecting  the  character  of  so 
great  a  man  as  Cowper,  it  in  a  great  measure  touches  the  whole  of  the  human 
kind. —  U  S.  Gaz. 

A  comprehensive  and  perspicuous  memoir  of  Cowper  has  been  much  wanted, 
and  will  be  read  with  gratification  by  the  admirers  of  this  amiable  and  pious 
man,  whose  accomplishments,  excellencies,  and  peculiarity  of  character,  have 
rendered  him  an  object  of  interest  to  the  world.  We  are  indebted  to  Mr.  Taylor 
for  his  excellent  work,  and  for  the  happy  manner  in  which  it  has  been  accom¬ 
plished. — Boston  Tran. 

Thirty  years  nearly  have  passed  since  we  first  read  with  great  delight  Hayley’s 
Life  of  Cowper,  and  we  have  never  cast  our  eyes  on  the  volumes  since,  without 
wishing  to  unravel  a  few  things  in  the  poet’s  history  which  were  then  left  in 
mystery.  Taylor  professes  to  deal  openly,  and  remove  all  concealment.  In  one 
beautiful  volume,  he  has  given  us  the  substance  of  all  which  is  known  concern¬ 
ing  the  most  sensible  and  pious  of  all  the  English  poets;  whose  writings  will 
be  regarded  as  the  best  of  their  kind  wherever  the  English  language  shall  be 
read.  In  all  his  numerous  works,  he  has  no  line  of  measured  jingle  without 
sense.  Can  this  be  said  of  scarcely  any  other  child  of  the  muses  ?  Those  who 
have  Hayley’s  two  volumes,  will  be  thankful  for  the  labors  of  Taylor;  and  those 
who  have  neither,  should  purchase  this  new  compilation  without  delay.  It  is  a 
work  which  will  be  found  interesting  to  all  classes,  especially  to  the  lovers  of 
literature  and  genuine  piety,  and  to  place  within  the  reach  of  general  readers, 
many  of  whom  have  neither  the  means  nor  the  leisure  to  consult  larger  works,  all 
that  is  really  interesting  respecting  that  singularly  afflicted  individual,  whose  pro¬ 
ductions,  both  poetic  and  prose,  can  never  be  read  but  withdelight. — Philadelphian. 

Messrs  Key  &  Biddle  deserve  credit  for  placing  within  the  reach  of  all,  in  so 
cheap  and  convenient  a  form,  what  must  be  salutary  in  every  instance  in  its 
general  effect.  The  character,  pursuits,  performances,  and  sufferings  of  Cowper, 
combine  more  interest  than  belongs  to  the  life  of  any  of  the  great  English  au¬ 
thors  who  spent  any  considerable  part  of  their  days  in  retirement. — J\Tat.  Gaz. 

A  beautiful  American  edition,  from  the  press  of  Key  &  Biddle,  has  just  been 
published,  and  cannot  fail  to  meet  with  a  welcome  reception  from  all  who  ad¬ 
mire  that  best  of  men  and  most  agreeable  of  poets.  It  is  the  most  complete  and 
valuable  edition  of  the  Life  of  Cowper  extant,  and  contains  a  well-executed  por¬ 
trait. — Poulson's  Daily  Jldv. 


11 


WORKS  PUBLISHED  BY  KE1T  &  BIDDER. 

LEGENDS  OF  THE  WEST. 

*yJ™GS  Ha”vsec«nd  cdltion>  containing  the  following  beauti¬ 
ful  told  tales  :-The  Backwoodsman  ;-The  Divining  Rod --The 

s  teSiM.*vssas:' -*■ 

“»  ‘1*  Hall  h„ 

to  u» 

personal  familiarity  with  scenery  and  life  in  thp  Wod  nira^y  drawn,  and  his 
»I°f  PeCUliar  interCSt’  SrCatly  inMeased  by  felicitous  description!—^*!^ 

work,  whose  UUe°heads  this  artfcle!!ated  3  demand  for  a  second  edition  of  the 

of  these  talesf are  alHocated  in  th™ ‘^for  West°”  andth e  cha^'t  The  SCP'U!S 
from  the  aborigines  and  early  emigrants  Tim  diffmnh^  tbe  cjlaracters  are  taken 
first  settlers  hid  to  undergo da I lgMS  which  the 
in  glowing  colors,  and  with  a  master  ha  rid,  eStab,ished  in  security.  ans  depicted 

shrieks  of  consuming  women  and  children  are  r>rps?PntpHP«ailie  and-  lolrest>  the 
author  in  vivid  and  impressive  language  ThesePtale«.  ml1  °Ur  F'-nds  by  the 
they  are  founded  in  fact,  and  are  illustrative  Iff  mi  n  F)f>.ssessrrluch  interest,  as 
the  life  of  the  hunter.  As  a  vvrker  Jud/e  Hall  °f  tlle  Indian-  aad 

we  possess;  his  scenes  are  American  •  his  charters  ! r^“encan  than  any  other 
guage  is  American  His  personages  a  rein  vesredwilh  ^  a',"'  his  ]an‘ 

cannot  be  mistaken,  and  his  concent  ions  amlUhmt™,h  individuality  which 
great  storehouse  of  Nature.— Daily  Intel.  d  lllustratl0ns  are  drawn  from  the 

the  church  of  god, 

of^L^CdtageDiSeSg?.  by  the  Rev-  Robert  Wilson  Era”s’ 

Christian* Religion  have ^eenS taught,0^  doCtrinea  of  «» 

stitution  of  th!  Church  in  the  femily  of  AdM  to  t  ,hT,,Satlolls’  f™">  'he  in- 
exposition  of  its  principles  by  the  Savior  and hi*  *  the  more  clear  and  perfect 
deal  wholly  with  general  nrincinlpq  fhnao  •  ^  I1  s  apostles.  He  is  thus  led  to 
agree.  This  freest  fw  rT5  aiTs^  the  "reat  body  of  1 Christians 

and  talent  exhibited  in  its  execution  omlnfl  f  f,?18?'  and  the  ingenuity 
It  would  perhaps  be  well  to  say  that’ the  above  Iw!  religious  of  every  name, 
tory  of  Valehead.” — Episcopal  Recorder .  WOlk  18  by  the  author  of  “  Rec- 

THE  PROGRESSIVE  EXPERIENCE  OR  tur 
UNDER  THE  DISCIPLINE  OF  THE  HOLY 
REGENERATION  TO  MATURITY  B?  Mrs  sS.  M 

inS4«,wZrU«  «fe^  readers  and  to  serious 

dently  the  prediction  of  a  niind  aL  h  ar  rh„m ,  •  ’?  s‘yle-  a"d  is  evi- 

knowledge  and  experience.  The  operations  of  the  tw  y  inlbned  with  Christian 
man,  are  traced  with  a  discrimination wh”!h no?hin^.^-  Up°'\ the  SOuI  of 
of  his  influences  could  have  furnished.  Dodd  rid -re’s  R^e  n,!d  p?™  expPr‘,Ulce 
gion  in  the  Soul,  is  an  admirable  book  on  this  submet  but  Mr,  £r°greS?  of  Reli‘ 
deserves  an  honorable  place  at  i  ts  side,  Ministers  of  ■  K  trea  tisR 

the  spiritual  welfare  of  their  neonle  L  ri„l  l6rS  ,■  tllc  GosPel  should  consult 
culationofs  uch  works! —Pretftyteria  nJ  recomrnending  and  promoting  the  cir- 


ilG. 


